Russia has demanded to know why it has been 'denied consular access' to the Skripals in a fresh list of questions for British authorities.

The embassy published a list of 14 questions on Saturday over the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury.

The first question on the list read: 'Why has Russia been denied consular access to the two Russian nationals, Sergei and Yulia Skripal, that have become crime victims in the British territory?'

It also included demands to know what treatment the pair were given and queried France's 'involvement' in the investigation and asked if the nerve agent Novichok could have been 'researched, developed or produced in the UK'.

The Russian Embassy previously released a list of 27 questions about the case, including details about the Skripals' condition.

It also claimed Mr Skripal's niece had been inquiring after his health but that she had been ignored by the Foreign Office, and asked why no images or footage of the Skripals in hospital had been published.

Earlier on Saturday, the UK Foreign Office said it was considering a request from Russia to see Ms Skripal.

A spokeswoman for the FCO said the 'rights and wishes of Yulia' will be taken into account as well as internal laws.

Ms Skripal spent three weeks in a critical condition after she and her father were exposed to Novichok on March 4.

The Russian Embassy had said it 'insists' on the right to see Ms Skripal, 33, after it emerged she was improving rapidly.

An FCO spokeswoman said: 'We are considering requests for consular access in line with our obligations under international and domestic law, including the rights and wishes of Yulia Skripal.'

Mr Skripal remains in a critical but stable condition in hospital.

Questions also included whether the UK possessed samples of Novichok, and how UK authorities had determined the substance used in Salisbury came from Russia.

The list also asked which antidotes had been given to the former spy and his daughter, and how they had been available to medical staff.

The Russian embassy also accused British authorities of 'another blatant provocation' after an Aeroflot flight was allegedly searched by Border Force officers at Heathrow.

An embassy official suggested that the jet, which had arrived from Moscow on a scheduled return trip, had been searched in connection with the diplomatic crisis over the Salisbury spy poisoning.

The row intensified after the Kremlin ordered Britain to reduce the number of diplomats in Moscow down to the same amount that Russia has in London.

In response to reports that more than 50 British diplomats would be removed, the embassy said: 'It is not about expulsion of British diplomats, it is about setting the overall number of people working at UK diplomatic missions in Russia and Russian diplomatic missions in the UK on the same level.'

The UK expelled 23 Russian diplomats in the wake of the poisoning of Mr Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia with the nerve agent Novichok.

Russia has told a number of countries - including Ireland, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Finland, Poland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Norway and Australia - they must send home the same number of diplomats as they had ordered to leave their nations.

So far, more than 150 Russian diplomats, some of whom are suspected spies, have been told to return home by the UK's allies.

Scotland Yard believes Mr Skripal and his daughter, who was visiting him from Russia, first came into contact with the deadly chemical at his home.

Detailed forensic testing revealed the highest concentration of Novichok was found on the front door.

Mr Skripal and his daughter have been patients at Salisbury District Hospital since they were discovered unconscious on a park bench close to The Maltings shopping centre nearly four weeks ago.

Wiltshire Police Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey, who was also exposed to the nerve agent, was discharged from the hospital last week.</s>Russia has sent a list of fresh questions to British authorities over the investigation into the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal.

The Russian embassy published a list of 14 questions on Saturday over the nerve agent attack on 4 March.

The first question asks: "Why has Russia been denied consular access to the two Russian nationals, Sergei and Yulia Skripal, that have become crime victims in the British territory?"

The embassy also repeatedly queries France's "involvement" in the investigation and asks if novichok - the nerve agent the UK says was used in the attack - could have been "researched, developed or produced in the UK".

Russia, which rejects UK accusations of orchestrating the poisoning, had previously released a list of 27 questions about the case, including queries about the condition of the two victims.

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The UK Foreign Office said on Saturday it was considering a request from Russia to see Ms Skripal, and that the "rights and wishes of Yulia" will be taken into account as well as international laws.

Ms Skripal's condition is improving after she spent three weeks in a critical condition. Her father remains critical but stable.

Image: Yulia Skripal is recovering well

Russia has insisted on the right to see the 33-year-old after it emerged she was improving rapidly.

An FCO spokeswoman said: "We are considering requests for consular access in line with our obligations under international and domestic law, including the rights and wishes of Yulia Skripal."

The UK has expelled 23 Russian diplomats in the wake of the poisoning of Mr Skripal, 66, and his daughter. A number of other countries followed suit, including America, Canada, Australia and more than a dozen EU nations.

The first plane carrying Russian diplomats expelled from the US landed in Moscow on Sunday.

Image: Police in protective suits investigate nearby areas

The full list of questions from Russia to the UK:

1. Why has Russia been denied consular access to the two Russian nationals, Sergei and Yulia Skripal, that have become crime victims in the British territory?

2. What specific antidotes were administered to Mr and Ms Skripal, and in which form? How were those antidotes available for the medical staff on the site of the incident?

3. On what grounds has France been involved in technical cooperation with regard to the investigation of an incident in which Russian nationals had suffered?

4. Has the United Kingdom informed the OPCW (Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons) of France's involvement in the investigation?

5. How is France relevant to the incident with two Russian nationals in the UK?

6. What British procedural rules allow a foreign state to be involved in a domestic investigation?

7. What evidence has been passed to France for studying and/or for a French investigation?

8. Were French experts present when biological material was taken from Mr and Ms Skripal?

9. Have French experts studied biological material taken from Mr and Ms Skripal, and at which laboratories?

10. Does the UK possess the results of the French investigation?

11. Have the results of the French investigation been passed to the OPCW Technical Secretariat?

12. On the basis of which characteristics ("markers") has it been ascertained that the substance used in Salisbury "originated from Russia"?

13. Does the UK possess reference samples of the military-grade poisonous substance that British representatives identify as "Novichok"?

14. Has the substance identified by British representatives as "Novichok" or analogous substances been researched, developed or produced in the UK?</s>Russia has sent a list of fresh questions to British authorities over the investigation into the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal.

The Russian embassy published a list of 14 questions on Saturday over the nerve agent attack on 4 March.

The first question asks: "Why has Russia been denied consular access to the two Russian nationals, Sergei and Yulia Skripal, that have become crime victims in the British territory?"

The embassy also repeatedly queries France's "involvement" in the investigation and asks if novichok - the nerve agent the UK says was used in the attack - could have been "researched, developed or produced in the UK".

Russia, which rejects UK accusations of orchestrating the poisoning, had previously released a list of 27 questions about the case, including queries about the condition of the two victims.

The UK Foreign Office said on Saturday it was considering a request from Russia to see Ms Skripal, and that the "rights and wishes of Yulia" will be taken into account as well as international laws.

Ms Skripal's condition is improving after she spent three weeks in a critical condition. Her father remains critical but stable.

Russia has insisted on the right to see the 33-year-old after it emerged she was improving rapidly.

An FCO spokeswoman said: "We are considering requests for consular access in line with our obligations under international and domestic law, including the rights and wishes of Yulia Skripal."

The UK has expelled 23 Russian diplomats in the wake of the poisoning of Mr Skripal, 66, and his daughter. A number of other countries followed suit, including America, Canada, Australia and more than a dozen EU nations.

The first plane carrying Russian diplomats expelled from the US landed in Moscow on Sunday.

The full list of questions from Russia to the UK:

1. Why has Russia been denied consular access to the two Russian nationals, Sergei and Yulia Skripal, that have become crime victims in the British territory?

2. What specific antidotes were administered to Mr and Ms Skripal, and in which form? How were those antidotes available for the medical staff on the site of the incident?

3. On what grounds has France been involved in technical cooperation with regard to the investigation of an incident in which Russian nationals had suffered?

4. Has the United Kingdom informed the OPCW (Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons) of France's involvement in the investigation?

5. How is France relevant to the incident with two Russian nationals in the UK?

6. What British procedural rules allow a foreign state to be involved in a domestic investigation?

7. What evidence has been passed to France for studying and/or for a French investigation?

8. Were French experts present when biological material was taken from Mr and Ms Skripal?

9. Have French experts studied biological material taken from Mr and Ms Skripal, and at which laboratories?

10. Does the UK possess the results of the French investigation?

11. Have the results of the French investigation been passed to the OPCW Technical Secretariat?

12. On the basis of which characteristics ("markers") has it been ascertained that the substance used in Salisbury "originated from Russia"?

13. Does the UK possess reference samples of the military-grade poisonous substance that British representatives identify as "Novichok"?

14. Has the substance identified by British representatives as "Novichok" or analogous substances been researched, developed or produced in the UK?</s>What does Britain want from the OPCW?

What were OPCW experts doing in Britain?

Why and how was France involved?

Russia has sent a list of 13 questions to the UN's chemical weapons watchdog, the OPCW, demanding answers on its involvement in the British probe into the poisoning by a nerve agent of former double agent Sergei Skripal.The letter was published by the Russian Foreign Ministry on Sunday, a day after similar questionnaires were forwarded to the foreign departments of the UK and France. In a statement on its website, the ministry again stressed that the whole Skripal case was "fabricated against Russia." The 13 questions, sent by Russia's permanent mission at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to the watchdog's Technical Secretariat, can be divided into broader groups that address three important aspects of the ongoing investigation: the UK's dealings with the OPCW, the OPCW's procedure and France's involvement in the investigation.The first several questions deal with the assistance that the OPCW provided to the British in the investigation.Moscow is also askingand whether the Technical Secretariat has plans to share its information on the Skripal case with the OPCW Executive Council, of which Russia is a member.Russia wants more clarity regarding the recent visit of OPCW experts to the UK: who the team's leader and members were, how long they stayed and who they interacted with.Theof the order in which the samples, data, and records are handled by various parties involved in an investigation, which ensures the physical security of the evidence.Other questions are aboutbrought from the UK, and when to expect results.Russia is asking the OPCW toof the Skripal case, which was a crime involving Russian citizens on the British soil, with no apparent effect on French interests.Moscow is also wonderingMoscow is asking whether the watchdog received materials on the Skripal case from the French investigation and - if so - whether they will be shared with Russia.Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, were poisoned with what the UK claims is the Soviet-designed nerve agent А-234 (also known as 'Novichok'), in Salisbury in early March. London said that it was "highly likely" that Russia was responsible for the attack and introduced sanctions against the country, including the expulsion of Russian diplomats.Britain addressed the OPCW for assistance and engaged France in the investigation, while brushing away Moscow's offers of cooperation and demands for proof of Russia's alleged involvement. Russia has denied the UK's accusations, calling them baseless, and decried the Skripal case as a "provocation."</s>A similar list, containing 10 questions, was sent to the French Foreign Ministry by the Russian Embassy in Paris

Russia’s Embassy in London has sent a list of 14 questions to the UK Foreign Ministry, demanding that it reveals details of the investigation into the nerve-agent poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter.

The questions, provided in full below, include a demand to clarify whether samples of the nerve agent А-234 (also known as “Novichok”) have ever been developed in the UK. The embassy’s statement calls the incident that started the recent diplomatic row a “fabricated case against Russia.”

1. Why has Russia been denied the right of consular access to the two Russian citizens, who came to harm on British territory? 2. What specific antidotes and in what form were the victims injected with? How did such antidotes come into the possession of British doctors at the scene of the incident? 3. On what grounds was France involved in technical cooperation in the investigation of the incident, in which Russian citizens were injured? 4. Did the UK notify the OPCW (Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons) of France’s involvement in the investigation of the Salisbury incident? 5. What does France have to do with the incident, involving two Russian citizens in the UK? 6. What rules of UK procedural legislation allow for the involvement of a foreign state in an internal investigation? 7. What evidence was handed over to France to be studied and for the investigation to be conducted? 8. Were the French experts present during the sampling of biomaterial from Sergei and Yulia Skripal? 9. Was the study of biomaterials from Sergei and Yulia Skripal conducted by the French experts and, if so, in which specific laboratories? 10. Does the UK have the materials involved in the investigation carried out by France? 11. Have the results of the French investigation been presented to the OPCW Technical Secretariat? 12. Based on what attributes was the alleged “Russian origin” of the substance used in Salisbury established? 13. Does the UK have control samples of the chemical warfare agent, which British representatives refer to as “Novichok”? 14. Have the samples of a chemical warfare agent of the same type as “Novichok” (in accordance to British terminology) or its analogues been developed in the UK?

A similar list, containing 10 questions, was sent to the French Foreign Ministry by the Russian Embassy in Paris. According to the document, Moscow wanted to know on what grounds France was involved in the British investigation into the Skripal poisoning.

It demanded that Paris reveal what kind of evidence was handed over to France by the UK, and also inquired if French experts were in possession of the samples of the nerve agent А-234 (also known as “Novichok”) or biomaterials from Sergei and Yulia Skripal.

Russia also demanded explanations on what made French experts conclude that the substance used in Salisbury attack was nerve agent А-234 and that it was of Russian origins. The final question on the list read: “Have the samples of a chemical warfare agent of this type or its analogues been developed in France and if so, for what purpose?”

Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, were discovered on a bench in Salisbury in early March, with the UK claiming a Soviet-designed nerve agent was used against them. Without a proper investigation being carried out, London said it was “highly likely” that Russia was responsible for the attack and introduced sanctions against the country, including the expulsion of Russian diplomats.

Moscow has denied all accusations, decrying them as a “provocation,” and demanded proof from the British side. However, London refused to cooperate with Russia on the case, denying its consular staff access to Russian citizen Yulia Skripal and turning down the request to provide a sample of the toxic substance in question.</s>Russia has sent a list of 13 questions to the UN's chemical weapons watchdog, the OPCW, demanding answers on its involvement in the British probe into the poisoning by a nerve agent of former double agent Sergei Skripal.

The letter was published by the Russian Foreign Ministry on Sunday, a day after similar questionnaires were forwarded to the foreign departments of the UK and France. In a statement on its website, the ministry again stressed that the whole Skripal case was "fabricated against Russia." The 13 questions, sent by Russia's permanent mission at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to the watchdog's Technical Secretariat, can be divided into broader groups that address three important aspects of the ongoing investigation: the UK's dealings with the OPCW, the OPCW's procedure and France's involvement in the investigation.

What does Britain want from the OPCW?

The first several questions deal with the assistance that the OPCW provided to the British in the investigation.

"What exactly is Britain asking the OPCW Technical Secretariat to confirm: only the fact that a nerve agent was used or that it belongs to the 'Novichok' type under Western classification?" one of the questions reads.

Moscow is also asking what type of samples and other evidence was handed over to the OPWC by the British and whether the Technical Secretariat has plans to share its information on the Skripal case with the OPCW Executive Council, of which Russia is a member.

READ MORE: UK may have staged Skripal poisoning to rally people against Russia, Moscow believes

What were OPCW experts doing in Britain?

Russia wants more clarity regarding the recent visit of OPCW experts to the UK: who the team's leader and members were, how long they stayed and who they interacted with.

"What was the sampling procedure [during the OPCW team's visit]; was the basic principle of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) observed in the investigations (the so-called 'chain of custody')?" the letter asked. The 'chain of custody' principle provides for chronological documentation of the order in which the samples, data, and records are handled by various parties involved in an investigation, which ensures the physical security of the evidence.

Other questions are about which OPCW laboratories will analyze the samples brought from the UK, and when to expect results.

READ MORE: Russian embassy in UK warns citizens about possible provocations in Britain

Why and how was France involved?

Russia is asking the OPCW to explain France's involvement in the investigation of the Skripal case, which was a crime involving Russian citizens on the British soil, with no apparent effect on French interests.

"Did the OPCW Technical Secretariat provide its consent for the UK to disclose the investigation materials to EU countries (according to available information, France has fully joined the investigation)?" one of the questions read.

Moscow is also wondering whether France had notified the OPCW that the UK asked it to join the probe. Moscow is asking whether the watchdog received materials on the Skripal case from the French investigation and – if so – whether they will be shared with Russia.

Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, were poisoned with what the UK claims is the Soviet-designed nerve agent А-234 (also known as 'Novichok'), in Salisbury in early March. London said that it was "highly likely" that Russia was responsible for the attack and introduced sanctions against the country, including the expulsion of Russian diplomats.

Britain addressed the OPCW for assistance and engaged France in the investigation, while brushing away Moscow's offers of cooperation and demands for proof of Russia's alleged involvement. Russia has denied the UK's accusations, calling then baseless, and decried the Skripal case as a "provocation."

Like this story? Share it with a friend!</s>What if someone sold socks that didn’t match? In his new book Disrupt, Luke Williams, a veteran of frog design, talks about how that offbeat question was the impetus for the launch of Little Miss Matched, a company whose purposely mismatched socks proved surprisingly popular with young girls. It’s one of a number of examples Williams cites of new business innovations that began with what he calls “a disruptive hypothesis.” Another better-known one is Netflix, whose business model provided an answer to the question, What if a video rental company didn’t charge late fees?

It’s interesting that when you deconstruct stories of innovation, you find that many of them start with a question–often one that could be considered provocative, naïve, or maybe even a little crazy. In my own research into the design world, I found that breakthroughs ranging from the OXO potato peeler to the Cheetah prosthetic foot could be traced back to someone, somewhere, asking “What if??”

Likewise, a number of today’s hottest tech startups came into being as an attempt to answer ambitious questions like, What if we could somehow crowdsource everything a city has to offer? (Foursquare) or, What if we could get any question immediately answered by the world’s smartest people? (Quora).

On one level, this doesn’t come as too much of a surprise: It’s fairly well understood that one must question assumptions and challenge conventional wisdom in order to innovate. No less an authority than Einstein has told us, It’s all about the questions, stupid. (Okay, I?m paraphrasing Einstein there, but he actually did once say that if he only had an hour to solve a problem and his life depended on it, he’d devote the first 55 minutes to figuring out the right question to answer.)

But this raises an interesting you-know-what: If we can see that questions are linked to innovation and problem-solving, why are so many of us reluctant to ask them? A recent University of Michigan study found that people in business are generally loathe to raise questions?primarily because they fear that anyone who asks fundamental questions will be perceived as incompetent or uninformed. And if anything, this problem seems to worsen over time as people gain more experience and expertise in their fields. After all, experts know they’re supposed to supply answers, not more questions.

To be fair, this is not just a business-world failing. When I discussed the subject of “questioning” a while back with Richard Saul Wurman, the original creator of the TED Conference and a man who’s pretty much obsessed with questions, he immediately focused on the educational system. ‘In school, we’re rewarded for having the answer, not for asking a good question,’ Wurman pointed out. Which may explain why kids–who start off asking endless “why” and ‘what if’ questions–gradually ask fewer and fewer of them as they progress through grade school. And, Wurman observed, the questions they do ask tend to become “smaller and more proscribed.”

As for the ones who don’t stop asking questions? They’re more apt to become our top innovators and business leaders. A study of some 3,000 creative executives, conducted by researchers at Brigham Young University and the INSEAD business school, found that what linked all of these Steve Jobs-types, perhaps more than anything else, was their curiosity and willingness to question–?the same kind of inquisitiveness you see in small children,? according to Hal Gregersen, one of the authors of the study.</s>“Mayor Furney never had to do anything like this — I’m wondering what the reasoning is for it”

Port McNeill Council has some new rules in place when it comes to questions from the public.

A list of procedures for asking questions was handed out at the town’s last council meeting on March 26, which lead to one resident expressing his concerns that questions to council are too limited now.

“I was a little taken aback by the questions being limited to one,” said Ben Koel. “I’ve been attending council meetings since 2000, I’ve probably been to a 100 of them, and Mayor Furney never had to do anything like this — I’m wondering what the reasoning is for it, if this is the mayor’s decision, and I would like to hear councillors state if they are in agree with it or not.”

“It’s not limiting it to one question,” replied Mayor Shirley Ackland. “It’s asking one question per person at a time and going through the chamber so that one person doesn’t take up all the time we have with a series of questions, because there are times, like tonight, where we have had an hour-and-a-half long meeting and have an in-camera (private) meeting afterwards, and we have a commitment in our procedures to keep our meetings not any later than nine o’clock at night … it’s not an intent to limit questions, we just want to make sure everybody in the gallery has an opportunity to ask a question.”

Koel did not ask a follow up question.

New procedures for asking questions at Port McNeill council meetings are as follows:

1. Before adjournment the public is offered the opportunity to ask questions first before the media. Questions typically stem from the meeting that is just concluding.

2. Raise your hand if you wish to ask a question.

3. When the chair (mayor) recognizes you — you may ask your question.

4. Please direct your question to the chair — the chair may direct a councillor or staff to answer but typically the chair will answer the question.

5. You may ask a question — not a list or series of questions as there are others in the gallery that may also want to ask a question. You may ask another question if directed by the chair to do so. If you have a list of questions, the town office is open daily and you may arrange time to talk with staff members at another time.</s>Russia's Embassy in London has sent a list of 14 questions to the UK Foreign Ministry, demanding that it reveals details of the investigation into the nerve-agent poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter.The questions , provided in full below, include a demand to clarify whether samples of the nerve agent "Novichok" have ever been developed in the UK. The embassy's statement calls the incident that started the recent diplomatic row a "fabricated case against Russia."Why has Russia been denied the right of consular access to the two Russian citizens, who came to harm on British territory?What specific antidotes and in what form were the victims injected with? How did such antidotes come into the possession of British doctors at the scene of the incident?On what grounds was France involved in technical cooperation in the investigation of the incident, in which Russian citizens were injured?Did the UK notify the OPCW (Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons) of France's involvement in the investigation of the Salisbury incident?What does France have to do with the incident, involving two Russian citizens in the UK?What rules of UK procedural legislation allow for the involvement of a foreign state in an internal investigation?What evidence was handed over to France to be studied and for the investigation to be conducted?Were the French experts present during the sampling of biomaterial from Sergei and Yulia Skripal?Was the study of biomaterials from Sergei and Yulia Skripal conducted by the French experts and, if so, in which specific laboratories?Does the UK have the materials involved in the investigation carried out by France?Have the results of the French investigation been presented to the OPCW Technical Secretariat?Based on what attributes was the alleged "Russian origin" of the substance used in Salisbury established?Does the UK have control samples of the chemical warfare agent, which British representatives refer to as "Novichok"?Have the samples of a chemical warfare agent of the same type as "Novichok" (in accordance to British terminology) or its analogues been developed in the UK?</s>FG releases another list of ‘looters’, describes first as teaser

The Federal Government has released more names of people who had allegedly looted the nation’s treasury. DAILY POST reported that Lai Mohammed had released the first list of treasury looters at a press conference in Lagos on Friday. The second list was released by Mohammed, who stated that those complaining that the first list was […]

FG releases another list of ‘looters’, describes first as teaser

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The Embassy of Russia in London releases a list of 14 questions over the attack, including a question on possible French involvement.