Fifty million face masks for NHS cannot be used due to safety concerns
Fifty million face masks bought by the UK Government as part of a £252 million contract will not be used in the NHS due to safety concerns.
The masks, ordered from Ayanda Capital, have ear loops rather than head loops, and there are concerns over whether they are adequate.
The Government has confirmed in court papers that the masks, which are now in the Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC) logistic chain, will not be used in the NHS.
But Tim Horlick, CEO of Ayanda Capital, insists the masks are not unsafe or unusable, adding that none of his company’s products have ever been rejected by DHSC for any reason. He said: “In summary the masks met all Government specifications and standards, the masks are not unusable or unsafe and the Government has not wasted any money in purchasing these masks.”
Mr Horlick said his company supplieddhscwiththemasks they requested, approved and ordered, adding that it may be that the internal NHS requirements changed as things were moving very fast at the time.
The Good Law Project and Everydoctor, which are suing the Government over its Ayanda contract, estimate the 50 million masks would have cost more than £150m.
Labour called for an inquiry into the contract, while the Prime Minister said: “I’m very disappointed that any consignment of PPE should turn out not to be fit for purpose.”
He said there were legal proceedings under way so he would not be drawn on the specific example.
Court papers show the Governmentawardedthe£252.5m contract to Ayanda on 29 April, with £41.25m payable on commencement to secure the manufacturing capacity.
Ayanda Capital also supplied 150 million masks of another type, which the Government says are unaffected but will be subject to further testing.
The Government also disclosed in court papers that the original approach to sell the masks came from a businessman called Andrew Mills, director at a company called Prospermill, which had secured exclusive rights to the full production capacity of a large factory in China to produce masks and offer a large quantity almost immediately.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer called for an inquiry into the failings. “For months we were told that the Government was purchasing the right equipment for the front line. Yet again it hasn’t happened,” he said. “There needs now to be an investigation, an inquiry, into what went wrong with this particular contract because it’s just not good enough.”