Where is Yulia Skripal now after being discharged from hospital?

She has been taken to an undisclosed secure location. The location is a matter for the police, who remain the lead figures in the investigation, rather than the intelligence agencies.

Although she is a potential material witness in the case, Yulia is free to leave if she chooses, to travel to another part of the country or abroad, or even to return to Russia. But she would have discussed with police the concerns over her safety.

The fact that she has not yet spoken directly to the media has given rise to conspiracy theories, but it is understood that this was her own choice.

The Russian embassy has requested access to her, as a Russian citizen. Why has this not happened?

Russia blames the British government for refusing access and has asked for proof that she has rejected its approach of her own free will. The Foreign Office says she has decided herself not to meet Russian embassy officials, which suggests that she may not be planning to return to Russia any time soon.

Is it true that the Skripals could be given new identities and resettled in the US with the help of the CIA?

MI6 has an obligation to protect Sergei Skripal, as he was a double agent who worked for them. It would be doubly embarrassing if he was to be attacked again in the UK. But such a negotiation about resettlement seems unlikely to be conducted directly between UK and US intelligence agencies.

In the end, it will be up to the Skripals where they want to live. They are free to stay in the UK, move elsewhere in Europe, or head to the US. Many Russian spies have opted to live openly in the UK and elsewhere and, until the novichok attack, the threat against them was regarded as low.

Was the recording of a telephone conversation between Yulia and her cousin in Russia genuine?

The initial British government response was that the conversation was genuine, but it did not confirm this, because of the circumstances surrounding the call, such as the decision at the Russian end to record it. Yulia had no problems in securing a visa to visit her father, and had been back and forth before, but the government declined to provide a visa to her cousin Viktoria, and did not offer an explanation.

Will the Skripals make a full recovery?

Experts say it is impossible to know at present because there is little information about the long-term impact of novichok. “The thing is with the novichok agents, we don’t really know an awful lot about them other than what has come from historical research,” said Michelle Carlin, a senior lecturer in forensic and analytical chemistry at Northumbria University. “In those cases there has been some long-term neurological damage, but then you don’t know how much they were exposed to, how quickly they were treated, versus the Skripals.”

If there is neurological damage, it could take several forms. “This may include things like slowing of thought processes, a reduction of physical movement and respiratory problems – but we don’t know yet whether those will happen in this case,” said Carlin.

Chris Morris, of the medical toxicology centre at Newcastle University, said the signs were positive for the Skripals, and DS Nick Bailey, the police officer who came into contact with the novichok, also appeared to have made a good recovery. “There is no reason to figure that Mr Skripal is not going to be the same,” he said.

What sort of care will the Skripals need now?

Morris said ongoing care would depend on how the individuals responded and, as with any traumatic event, psychological support would be important. Physiotherapy might also be necessary.