"The judge, Mrs Justice Cockerill, ruled that PPE Medpro, owned by Mone's husband, the Isle of Man-based businessman Doug Barrowman, supplied defective personal protective equipment (PPE) for use in the NHS during the pandemic. Cockerill ordered that PPE Medpro must return the sum of 122m, which the Department of Health and Social Care paid for the order of 25m sterile surgical gowns, under a contract awarded in June 2020 via the VIP lane."
"The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, hailed the judgment as vindication for the Labour government's stated determination to recover some of the billions of pounds in public money wasted during the Covid crisis by Boris Johnson's administration. We want our money back. We are getting our money back, Reeves posted on X. And it will go where it belongs in our schools, NHS and communities."
"The June contract, and another worth 80.85m to supply face masks, also paid for by the DHSC, were granted to PPE Medpro after Mone approached the then Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove in May 2020. Her offer was processed via the VIP lane, the system operated by Johnson's government, giving priority to politically connected people such as Mone, treating them as more credible than experienced PPE suppliers."
Mrs Justice Cockerill found PPE Medpro, owned by Doug Barrowman, supplied defective PPE for NHS use during the pandemic and ordered return of 122m paid by the Department of Health and Social Care for 25m sterile surgical gowns. The gowns were supplied under a June 2020 contract awarded via the VIP lane after Michelle Mone approached Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove in May 2020. A separate DHSC contract worth 80.85m for face masks was also granted to PPE Medpro. Mone and Barrowman denied involvement for years before acknowledging roles in late 2023, with Mone admitting they had lied. Chancellor Rachel Reeves said recovered funds will go to schools, the NHS and communities.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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