THE Bishop of Salisbury has called the Skripal poisoning a ‘violation of our community.’

Rt Revd Nicholas Holtam discussed the recent incident while preaching at the annual Rule of law Service in Salisbury Cathedral on Sunday March 11.

He said: “In every community there are moments when you think you are standing on solid ground and suddenly drop below what felt safe and secure, discovering something new that previously had not been known.

“It is not yet entirely clear what happened last Sunday (4 March), nor are we certain who is responsible, but today, on the Sunday after this serious attack, we pray for Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia; for Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey; and for all who were contaminated by the nerve agent and have suffered sickness.

He also praised the response of the emergency services and said: “And we give thanks for the emergency services, fire, police and ambulance, and for our hospital caring for the sick.

“As well as a shocking attack on two individuals, this was a violation of our community. The Rector of St Thomas’ is planning a service in a month’s time to bring together those most closely involved in the events of the last week, to pray for the cleansing and healing of the people and the place that has been violated.

“Those who uphold the law have to think a great deal about truth. ‘What is truth?’ asked Pilate when passing judgement on Jesus. We have all had to think about truth recently in what is said to be, ‘a post-truth society’, in which there are ‘alternative facts’ with allegedly ‘fake news’. When you can’t tell truth for falsehood, trust and confidence break down. It is deeply corrosive of good relations. We all know truth can be difficult to tell, and always there is spin, but truth matters.

“Truth and justice are the touchstones of the Rule of Law. Those responsible for upholding the law have to be about the truth and seek justice even when it is difficult and personally costly.”