PRIME Minister Theresa May has confirmed that the government will provide "support of a variety of forms" to help Salisbury recover from the nerve agent attack in the city.

Mrs May visited Salisbury this afternoon to meet with local people and businesses, as well as the first responders to the scene at the Maltings on March 4, when Sergei and Yulia Skripal were found poisoned.

In a meeting with the local press, the prime minister said Salisbury residents "have tremendous resilience, great spirit and they look forward to welcoming people into this city".

When asked if there would be any support for businesses affected by the police cordons in the city, Mrs May said: "Yes, there will be support of a variety of forms that the government will be able to put in, including some financial support."

She said the government has "already stood up its recovery group" and would now be working closely with the council on future recovery plans, adding: "What we want to do is to work with local people to ensure that we can see those visitors coming back to Salisbury.

"It’s a great city to come to, we want to see visitors and tourists coming here."

And she "fully recognised" that some people would have concerns over their safety after the attack, "given the nature of what has happened here in Salisbury", but said Public Health England "are very clear that the risk to public health is low".

Mrs May also told the Journal that the government's plan to pledge an extra £48million for Britain’s defence science and technology laboratory at Porton Down "is not a direct response" to the attack in Salisbury.

She said: "This is something that has been planned. This is new capital investment in a particular aspect of the work that Porton Down does.

"Porton Down is a tremendous facility, it has an international reputation, it does great work, and this [funding] will be enabling it to continue its work and enhance its work in one particular area."

The prime minister, wearing a badge of the city's crest, said Salisbury was "a great city", adding: "I’ve been very pleased to be able to come here today."