Roy Collins, secretary at Amesbury Baptist Centre, told Premier News Hour Charlie Rowley attended a barbecue at the church on Saturday – apparently already displaying symptoms.

“He was very slow in conversation. Indeed a little bit incoherent,” he said.

“He looked as if he’d been suffering from excess of alcohol, that’s what I first thought. It was good to see them there. He smiled and was friendly, but he was generally very dishevelled and unkept in his appearance.”

Rowley and Dawn Sturgess were taken ill on Saturday in Amesbury, around eight miles from where former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were poisoned with the same agent in Salisbury in March.

One theory understood to be under investigation is that the pair who were poisoned in the latest incident may have inadvertently found a discarded container – such as a phial or syringe – used to transport the nerve agent for the initial attack on the Skripals.

Novichok remains highly toxic for a considerable period of time, so even the tiniest trace remaining in a container picked up by the victims could account for their severe illness.

Collins said the community feels “violated” after the second nerve agent emergency in four months.

“We’re very much a part of Salisbury. Our family works there; our children go to college there. We’re very much a…

Named the first ever Prime Minister’s Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion or Belief, Lord Tariq Ahmad of Wimbledon has also been asked to champion dialogue and respect between difference faith groups.

Lord Ahmad said: “In too many parts of the world, religious minorities are persecuted, discriminated against and treated as second class citizens.

“As a man of faith, I feel this very keenly.

“Freedom of religion or belief is a human right enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It must be respected.

“People from all faiths or none should be free to practise as they wish. This respect is key to global stability, and is in all our interests.

Lord Ahmad will work with faith groups and governments across the globe to highlight religious persecution and what can be done to tackle it.

Delighted and deeply honoured to be entrusted with this important responsibility by @theresa_may https://t.co/f73MeczXR9

— Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (@tariqahmadbt) July 4, 2018

Prime Minister Theresa May said: “Religious discrimination blights the lives of millions of people across the globe and leads to conflict and instability.

“Both here and abroad, individuals are being denied the basic right of being able to practise their faith free of fear.

“Tolerance for those of different faiths is fundamental to our values, and is an issue I know is already of great importance to Lord Ahmad, who is constantly looking for fresh…

The Christian racing driver will set his sights on wrestling back the championship lead at the British Grand Prix after falling one point behind Sebastian Vettel following a calamitous weekend for Mercedes in Austria.

Hamilton was given three days off by Mercedes as he prepares to race in front of an expectant 130,000 partisan fans at Silverstone on Sunday.

“Anything can happen any day, but I feel God has his hand over me,” Hamilton, 33, said ahead of his home race.

“Every morning I have breakfast and before I eat, I pray. Every time I eat, actually, I pray. So, whether it’s a couple of seconds, a minute or whatever you are praying for, take that moment.

“I go with a couple of my close friends [to church]. We meet, we go for breakfast and then we go to church together.

“We leave most often feeling enlightened and empowered. Sometimes you leave, and you are like ‘I didn’t get that today’, but most of the time you leave and you are like ‘wow, I know where I am going’.”

Hamilton is in his 12th season and this year is battling it out with Vettel for a fifth world crown.

Only Juan Manuel Fangio (five) and Michael Schumacher (seven) have won the championship more than four times.

Hamilton also surpassed Schumacher’s pole position record in Italy last year, and will become the most successful driver in the history of the…

The 15-year-old is being held by terror group Boko Haram because she refuses to denounce her Christian faith.

On Wednesday in the House of Commons, Tom Brake, the MP for Carshalton and Wallington, asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his department has had with the Nigerian authorities regarding the fate of Leah.

Harriett Baldwin, Minister of State for Africa at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, said the Foreign Secretary spoke to Nigerian Vice President Osinbajo on 26th February and extended an offer of additional UK assistance following the abductions from Dapchi.

She added: “Attacks on schools and abductions of children are abhorrent and must stop.

“The Government of Nigeria has said they are making all efforts to secure her release. The UK is resolute in its support for Nigeria in the fight against Boko Haram, and are providing a substantial package of intelligence, military and humanitarian support to assist in the response to the ongoing conflict.”

Leah was among 110 youngsters kidnapped by the extremists in the north-eastern village of Dapchi on 19th February.

A month later, all of them were freed, except five who died in the incident – and Leah.

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According to Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (CAN), Fr Firmin Gbagoua, Vicar General of Bambari Diocese, was shot several times in the stomach while eating dinner.

Members of a militia calling itself the Union for Peace in the Central African Republic (UPC) are thought to be responsible for the incident on 29th June.

Fr Gbagoua is the third priest to be killed in the Central African Republic this year.

In a statement, the Central African Bishops’ Conference (ECSC) strongly condemned the killings.

“We strongly call on the government and MINUSCA [United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in the Central African Republic] to coordinate their efforts so that those responsible for these murders will be arrested and brought to justice.”

They added: “Who does all this violence against the Catholic Church of Central Africa benefit?”

As tensions have steadily increased in the country, the Church has called for calm and urged Christians not to retaliate against members of the Muslim community, as UPC members come from the Islamic Fulani ethnic group.

“We urge the entire Christian community to remain calm and in prayer so as not to fall into the trap of those who want to show that Christians and Muslims can no longer live together in order to partition the Central African nation,” they said.

There have been a number of recent outbreaks of…