Shadow Foreign Minister Helen Goodman Is Convinced Russia Is Behind Spy Attack

17 March 2018, 10:11 | Updated: 17 March 2018, 10:25

Labour's Shadow Foreign Minister Helen Goodman tells Andrew Castle she is convinced the Russian's are behind the attack in Salisbury.

The Labour MP for Bishop Auckland was reacting to news that the Russian Foreign Ministry is to expel 23 British diplomats, which she described as "predictable".

Goodman said: "What I think is surprising and more disappointing is their proposal to close the British Council in Russia, which has done a lot of work teaching English, having shared culture, and really promoting people to people contact because that's what we need if we're to see the civil and democratic development in Russia we all want."

But she ducked a question from Andrew, who asked whether she was proud to be lead by Jeremy Corbyn this week.

"This is a difficult situation because obviously we're not experts in chemical weapons so we have to rely on what ministers tell us" she replied.

Helen Goodman said: "I believe that this was a Russian initiative because I can't see who else had the capacity or had the motive to murder this former Russian spy.

"So this whole thing stacks up completely.

"I think what's really important is that we have the right policy response to the threat which Russia is inevitably putting to us now.

"And that's partly about cyber defence, party about what our diplomatic response is, but it's also and where I think the government is really failing down, it's also about tackling the dirty money that's coming into the city of London."