[1andrew1]

It's not just 7 Conservative MPs who are being investigated. A Conservative peer is too!

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.

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”.

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.

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.”

https://www.ft.com/content/a5d96a07-...6-0ec2368c2fa1