‘We want our money back’: Rayner forces binding Commons vote to compel ministers to come clean over wasteful PPE Medpro contracts
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Labour will present a Humble Address motion to MPs on Tuesday [6
December], forcing a binding Commons vote to secure the release of
documents relating to the award of government PPE contracts worth
more than £200m to a company linked to Conservative peer Michelle
Mone. [1] PPE Medpro was awarded two public contracts worth
£203m to supply millions of face masks and sterile surgical gowns
during the COVID-19 pandemic [2]. In May 2020,
the...Request free trial
Labour will present a Humble Address motion to MPs on Tuesday [6 December], forcing a binding Commons vote to secure the release of documents relating to the award of government PPE contracts worth more than £200m to a company linked to Conservative peer Michelle Mone. [1]
PPE Medpro was awarded two public contracts worth £203m to supply millions of face masks and sterile surgical gowns during the COVID-19 pandemic [2].
In May 2020, the Department of Health struck an £81 million deal with PPE Medpro to supply 210 million IIR face masks at 38.5p a unit, despite the same masks manufactured by the same company being provided by other suppliers in the same period for as little as 14.5p. [3] A £122 million contract to supply 25 million gowns was awarded in June 2020, but the gowns were rejected after a technical inspection and never used. [4]
Documents seen by the Guardian revealed £29 million of PPE Medpro’s profits were later transferred to an Isle of Man trust, of which Conservative peer Baroness Mone and her adult children were the beneficiaries. [5]
Labour’s motion would compel the release of “all papers, advice, and correspondence involving Ministers and Special Advisers, including submissions and electronic communications” relating to the contracts to the Public Accounts Committee.
The Party is also demanding the Prime Minister commits to supporting Labour’s amendments to the Procurement Bill when it comes to the Commons in the New Year. [6]
Loopholes included in the Government’s proposed legislation will make it easier for ministers to bypass existing rules for the award of taxpayers’ money in contracts.
The Bill stands to allow procurement decisions made without competitive procedures by the personal decision of ministers, cementing into law the controversial ‘VIP lane’ that saw £1.7 billion of public money dished out and was declared illegal by the High Court earlier this year. The Government had previously denied the existence of the channel. [7]
During the Lords stages of the Bill, the Government was defeated on five of the six amendments that were put to a vote, but in a division that saw the highest turnout of Tory peers, blocked attempts to ban VIP lanes for direct award in procurement. [8]
Angela Rayner MP, Labour’s Deputy Leader and Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said:
“Britain is sick of being ripped off by the Tories. We want our money back.
“Tory MPs can either back Labour’s binding vote to force ministers to come clean on the murky award of £203 million in taxpayers’ money to a shady company linked to a Tory peer or they are choosing to be complicit in a cover-up.
“The ‘VIP lane’ for PPE is a scandal of epic proportions that has allowed the shameful waste of taxpayers’ money and inexcusable profiteering by Tory cronies.
“Instead of straining every sinew to clawback taxpayers’ money, and fresh from writing off the billions he carelessly lost to Covid fraud, Rishi Sunak is pushing a Procurement Bill full of loopholes that would give Tory ministers free reign to do it all over again.”
Ends Notes to editors:
[1] Motion:
That this House –
(a) notes that the Department for Health and Social Care purchased more than £12 billion of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in 2020-21;
(b) regrets that the Government has now written £8.7 billion off the value of this £12 billion, including £4 billion that was spent on PPE which did not meet NHS standards and was unusable;
(c) is extremely concerned that the Government’s high priority lane for procurement during the pandemic appears to have resulted in contracts being awarded without due diligence and wasted taxpayer money;
(d) considers there should be examination of the process by which contracts were awarded through the high priority lane;
(e) accordingly resolves that an Humble Address be presented to His Majesty, that he will be graciously pleased to give direction that all papers, advice, and correspondence involving Ministers and Special Advisers, including submissions and electronic communications, relating to the Government contracts for garments for biological or chemical protection, awarded to PPE Medpro by the Department for Health and Social Care, reference CF-0029900D0O000000rwimUAA1 and 547578 respectively, be provided to the Public Accounts Committee.
[2] The Guardian, 'Ministers face pressure to explain PPE Medpro contracts decision' [27/11/22]
[3] The Times, 'Michelle Mone: masks from firm linked to Tory peer cost double' [05/12/22]
[4] The Guardian, ‘Government paid firm linked to Tory peer £122m for PPE bought for £46m’ [27/03/22]
[5] The Guardian, 'Revealed: Tory peer Michelle Mone secretly received £29m from ‘VIP lane’ PPE firm' [23/11/22]
[6] Labour plans to force votes to the Procurement Bill to:
[7] £1.7bn of PPE contracts went through VIP 'high-priority lane' [11/02/21]https://labour.org.uk/press/government-declines-for-a-sixth-time-to-publish-details-of-companies-winning-work-through-its-vip-fast-lane-for-contracts/
[8] Procurement Bill [HL] Division 1: 30 November 2022: 201 contents: 220 not contents |