Barratt receives poison-package threat

Barratt employees in England and Scotland have received packages claiming to contain the deadly toxin ricin.

The threatening packages, which have sparked a major police investigation, are understood to be the work of an objector to a Barratt Homes development on a brownfield site in the Midlands.

One of the letters, sent to a Barratt office in Northampton, included the message "Death to All Barratt Employees" and a claim that the package contained the deadly poison.

So far, the posion-pen letters have been sent to 10 different Barratt offices and there are fears that more such packages will be sent to all the company’s UK divisional headquarters.

A Barratt spokesman confirmed: "We have received letters containing white powder at a small number of offices.

"The powder is entirely harmless and the matter is now in the hands of the police.

"The brownfield site had routine planning permission and Barratt has done nothing wrong."

Nottinghamshire Police, which is heading up the investigation, said it is working with other forces across the country to find out the origin of the menacing letters.

The police said: "At this time, there is no suggestion that this is in any way linked to recent terrorism alerts."

Ricin is a powerful poison that affects organs and the central nervous system. A tiny speck of the substance can prove fatal.