Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Baroness Michelle Mone has admitted she stands to gain from profits of about £60mn from selling protective equipment to the UK government during the Covid-19 pandemic, having previously denied any role in the deal.
Mone, made a Conservative peer by Lord David Cameron in 2015, also confirmed on Sunday that she lied to the press to cover up her involvement, but said: “I wasn’t trying to pull the wool over anyone’s eyes.”
Mone and husband Doug Barrowman said that the government was told of the Tory peer’s ties to a medical equipment company that won more than £200mn in state contracts during the pandemic.
But over several years spokespeople and lawyers for Mone, a lingerie entrepreneur, denied she had any involvement with PPE Medpro, as did people representing Barrowman.
On Sunday Mone and Barrowman gave their version of events to the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, in an exercise dubbed by their allies as a “fightback” and an attempt to clear their names.
But in the interview Mone admitted lying about her involvement and confirmed that she and her family stood to benefit from the profits made in the personal protective equipment deal.
“I should have said I am involved straightaway, but I didn’t want the press intrusion for my family,” she said.
Barrowman said PPE Medpro had agreed two contracts with the government worth £202mn, making a 30 per cent profit of about £60mn, which he called “a good return”.
Mone admitted that she and her children were beneficiaries of trusts where the money was held. “If my husband passes away before me, then I am a beneficiary, as well as his children and my children,” she said.
She said that if Barrowman divorced her, she would not benefit. “It’s my husband’s money. It’s his money. It’s not my money and it’s not my children’s money.”
The UK government launched legal proceedings against PPE Medpro in December 2022, claiming breach of contract over the quality of £122mn worth of protective gowns provided by the company. PPE Medpro has denied that the goods were faulty.
Meanwhile, Barrowman claimed a government official suggested he handed over a significant amount of money so that a National Crime Agency investigation might be “called off”. He said he was “gobsmacked” by the suggestion.
The NCA said in a statement that it had opened a probe in May 2021 “into suspected criminal offences committed in the procurement of PPE contracts by PPE Medpro”. It added: “The NCA is operationally independent and our investigations are intelligence led.”
Oliver Dowden, deputy prime minister, declined to comment on specific allegations but said: “Of course we had a drive to get PPE in as rapidly as we could, but there were proper checks undertaken. There was proper due diligence undertaken.
“Now, of course with any large allocation of government funds for large-scale procurement, there are going to be issues that arise subsequently, but what I would say is in respect of this, you can see there is civil litigation happening.
“You can see there is a criminal investigation happening. So, if there is fraud, the government will crack down on it.”
Wes Streeting, shadow health secretary, said of Mone: “I must say I don’t know who thought it was a good idea for her to do that interview, but I don’t think anyone watching will be shedding any tears.”
While avoiding comment on the PPE Medpro case, he added: “Our message to those people who sought to use the pandemic to get rich quick: we want our money back.
“A Labour government will appoint a Covid corruption minister, giving them the powers they need to claw back as much of that money as possible. Because £8bn was lost through fraud, £15bn in unusable PPE.”
A government source said: “Michelle Mone took leave of absence from the House of Lords and is not currently an active member of the House. She is not taking the Conservative party whip.”
Read the full article here
