Labour in fresh call over PPE contracts
REPORTS that a Tory peer may have benefited from Covid PPE contracts raise “far wider” questions about how the Government awarded such agreements, Labour has said.
Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner hit out at a “total failure of due diligence” as she asked about PPE Medpro winning contracts for personal protective equipment and “profits made possible through the company’s personal connections to ministers”.
She referred to reports in the Guardian newspaper, which suggest Conservative peer Baroness Mone may have profited from the contracts.
The Lords standards watchdog is investigating the Tory peer over the awarding of government contracts worth more than £200 million to the PPE supplier.
Lady Mone has consistently denied any “role or function” in the company, and her lawyers have previously said she is “not connected to PPE Medpro in any capacity”.
Asking an urgent question in the Commons,
Ms Rayner said: “Last night, documents seen by The Guardian revealed that yet another case of taxpayers’ money was wasted, a total failure of due diligence, and a conflict of interest at the heart of Government procurement.
“In May 2020 PPE Medpro was set up and given £203 million in government contracts after a referral from a Tory peer.
“It now appears that tens of millions of pounds of that money ended up in offshore accounts connected to the individuals involved, profits made possible through the company’s personal connections to ministers and the Tories’ VIP lane that was declared illegal by the High Court.
“Yet ministers are still refusing to publish correspondence relating to the award of the Medpro contract because, they say, the department is engaged in a mediation process.”
The Labour deputy leader added: “There are rightly separate investigations into Baroness Mone’s conduct, but the questions this case raises are far wider.
“It took a motion from the opposition to force them to release records over the Randox scandal. Will they agree today to do the same in this case without being forced by the House? And can he say now what due diligence was performed in awarding the Medpro contract?”
Health minister Neil O’brien said a “satisfactory agreement” has not been reached with PPE Medpro about its contract.