UK Sues Over Protective Equipment Contract
The UK government is suing a company that supplied it with personal protective equipment (PPE) for £122M after the company had been recommended by a Conservative Party House of Lords member, Baroness Mone.
Facts
- The UK government is suing a company that supplied it with personal protective equipment (PPE) for £122M after the company had been recommended by a Conservative Party House of Lords member, Baroness Mone.
- The company, called PPE Medpro, was awarded a contract to supply 25M sterile surgical gowns in June 2020. Officials rejected the equipment after a review once they arrived at the NHS depot in Daventry; the Department of Health and Social Care is also seeking to recover the costs of storing and disposing of the gowns.
- One of PPE Medpro's directors, Anthony Page, is a director of a company (Knox House Trust), part of a larger group (The Knox Group) founded by Douglas Barrowman — the husband of Baroness Mone. Barrowman reportedly received £65M in profits from PPE Medpro in 2020.
- PPE Medpro stated that the case over the supply of gowns would be "rigorously defended" and criticized the government for a "cynical attempt to recover money from suppliers" who were working with good intentions.
- With the company at the center of a Westminster controversy, with many accusations that Tory MPs intentionally personally benefitted from awarding PPE contracts, Baroness Mone has taken an absence of leave from the House of Lords. She has denied the allegations.
Sources: BBC News, Guardian, FT, Sky News, and ITV.
Narratives
- Left narrative, as provided by Guardian. The undemocratic and overpopulated House of Lords is a place of cronies, toadies, and donors. They serve not the public interest but themselves, as seen with Baroness Mone. The behavior of Mone should be added to the extensive list of regrets that former Prime Minister David Cameron should have, and reform and scrutiny must immediately be placed upon Westminster's upper chamber.
- Right narrative, as provided by Telegraph. The issue of PPE Medpro has often been a cliché-riddled fury at government spending without much real value. However, the Baroness has not addressed the House of Lords since March 2020, leading to good questions about the relevance of "peerages" in today's society.
