London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Jan 19, 2026

Questions raised over PPE contract linked to Tory peer Baroness Mone

Questions raised over PPE contract linked to Tory peer Baroness Mone

Jeremy Hunt said he regrets the turbulence of recent months but said he did not accept an analysis that Liz Truss's mini-budget inflicted £30bn worth of damage.
The government is under pressure to release records relating to a multi-million pound PPE contract linked to Tory peer Baroness Mone.

In the House of Commons, Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner hit out at a "total failure of due diligence" as she asked about PPE Medpro winning a contract for personal protective equipment and "profits made possible through the company's personal connections to ministers".

"Last night, documents seen by The Guardian revealed that yet another case of taxpayers' money was wasted, a total failure of due diligence, and a conflict of interest at the heart of government procurement," she said.

"In May 2020 PPE Medpro was set up and given £203 million in government contracts after a referral from a Tory peer.

"It now appears that tens of millions of pounds of that money ended up in offshore accounts connected to the individuals involved, profits made possible through the company's personal connections to ministers and the Tories' VIP lane that was declared illegal by the High Court."

Ms Rayner said there "are rightly separate investigations into Baroness Mone's conduct, but the questions this case raises are far wider".

Michelle Mone, the Conservative peer who founded the lingerie brand Ultimo, is under investigation by the House of Lords Commissioner for standards.

Parliament's website says this is over "alleged involvement in procuring contracts for PPE Medpro leading to potential breaches…of the House of Lords code of conduct".

Ms Rayner said the government was refusing to publish correspondence relating to the award of the Medpro contract because they are still engaged in a mediation process.

In an urgent question to health minister Neil O'Brien she asked if that mediation process has reached any outcome "and what public funds have been recovered, if any?"

Mr O'Brien said it was "widely reported it had an underperforming contract" and laid out the process the government would pursue.

"The first step is to send a letter before action which outlines a claim for damages.

"And that's then followed by litigation in the event that a satisfactory agreement has not been reached.

"And to answer the right honourable lady's question directly, we haven't got to the point where a satisfactory agreement has been reached at this stage."

Downing Street would not be drawn on the allegations around Baroness Mone.

Ms Rayner said that while today's reports concern just one case "this government has written off £10 billion alone in PPE that was deemed unfit for use".

"Ministers appear to have learned no lessons and have no shame. As families struggle to make ends meet, taxpayers will spend £700,000 a day on the storage of inadequate PPE."

The government's use of high priority lanes to speed up the award process for PPE contracts during the pandemic have been branded "VIP Lanes" by critics, with Labour previously claiming there is a "cash for access" culture within the Tory party.

But being referred to the high-priority lane "was emphatically not a guarantee of a contract and indeed, nearly 90% of offers referred through the route were unsuccessful", the Downing Street spokesman said.

Baroness Mone has declined to comment on the latest allegations.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Meghan Markle May Return to the U.K. This Summer as Security Review Advances
Trump’s Greenland Tariff Threat Sparks EU Response and Risks Deep Transatlantic Rift
Prince Harry’s High Court Battle With Daily Mail Publisher Begins in London
Trump’s Tariff Escalation Presents Complex Challenges for the UK Economy
UK Prime Minister Starmer Rebukes Trump’s Greenland Tariff Strategy as Transatlantic Tensions Rise
Prince Harry’s Last Press Case in UK Court Signals Potential Turning Point in Media and Royal Relations
GDP Growth Remains the Most Telling Barometer of Britain’s Economic Health
Prince William and Kate Middleton Stay Away as Prince Harry Visits London Amid Lingering Rift
Britain Braces for Colder Weather and Snow Risk as Temperatures Set to Plunge
Mass Protests Erupt as UK Nears Decision on China’s ‘Mega Embassy’ in London
Prince Harry to Return to UK to Testify in High-Profile Media Trial Against Associated Newspapers
Keir Starmer Rejects Trump’s Greenland Tariff Threat as ‘Completely Wrong’
Trump to hit Europe with 10% tariffs until Greenland deal is agreed
Prince Harry Returns to UK High Court as Final Privacy Trial Against Daily Mail Publisher Begins
Britain Confronts a Billion-Pound Wind Energy Paradox Amid Grid Constraints
The graduate 'jobpocalypse': Entry-level jobs are not shrinking. They are disappearing.
Cybercrime, Inc.: When Crime Becomes an Economy. How the World Accidentally Built a Twenty-Trillion-Dollar Criminal Economy
The Return of the Hands: Why the AI Age Is Rewriting the Meaning of “Real Work”
UK PM Kier Scammer Ridicules Tories With "Kamasutra"
Strategic Restraint, Credible Force, and the Discipline of Power
United Kingdom and Norway Endorse NATO’s ‘Arctic Sentry’ Mission Including Greenland
Woman Claiming to Be Freddie Mercury’s Secret Daughter Dies at Forty-Eight After Rare Cancer Battle
UK Launches First-Ever ‘Town of Culture’ Competition to Celebrate Local Stories and Boost Communities
Planned Sale of Shell and Exxon’s UK Gas Assets to Viaro Energy Collapses Amid Regulatory and Market Hurdles
UK Intensifies Arctic Security Engagement as Trump’s Greenland Rhetoric Fuels Allied Concern
Meghan Markle Could Return to the UK for the First Time in Nearly Four Years If Security Is Secured
Meghan Markle Likely to Return to UK Only if Harry Secures Official Security Cover
UAE Restricts Funding for Emiratis to Study in UK Amid Fears Over Muslim Brotherhood Influence
EU Seeks ‘Farage Clause’ in Brexit Reset Talks to Safeguard Long-Term Agreement Stability
Starmer’s Push to Rally Support for Action Against Elon Musk’s X Faces Setback as Canada Shuns Ban
UK Free School Meals Expansion Faces Political and Budgetary Delays
EU Seeks ‘Farage Clause’ in Brexit Reset Talks With Britain
Germany Hit by Major Airport Strikes Disrupting European Travel
Prince Harry Seeks King Charles’ Support to Open Invictus Games on UK Return
Washington Holds Back as Britain and France Signal Willingness to Deploy Troops in Postwar Ukraine
Elon Musk Accuses UK Government of Suppressing Free Speech as X Faces Potential Ban Over AI-Generated Content
Russia Deploys Hypersonic Missile in Strike on Ukraine
OpenAI and SoftBank Commit One Billion Dollars to Energy and Data Centre Supplier
UK Prime Minister Starmer Reaffirms Support for Danish Sovereignty Over Greenland Amid U.S. Pressure
UK Support Bolsters U.S. Seizure of Russian-Flagged Tanker Marinera in Atlantic Strike on Sanctions Evasion
The Claim That Maduro’s Capture and Trial Violate International Law Is Either Legally Illiterate—or Deliberately Deceptive
UK Data Watchdog Probes Elon Musk’s X Over AI-Generated Grok Images Amid Surge in Non-Consensual Outputs
Prince Harry to Return to UK for Court Hearing Without Plans to Meet King Charles III
UK Confirms Support for US Seizure of Russian-Flagged Oil Tanker in North Atlantic
Béla Tarr, Visionary Hungarian Filmmaker, Dies at Seventy After Long Illness
UK and France Pledge Military Hubs Across Ukraine in Post-Ceasefire Security Plan
Prince Harry Poised to Regain UK Security Cover, Clearing Way for Family Visits
UK Junk Food Advertising Ban Faces Major Loophole Allowing Brand-Only Promotions
Maduro’s Arrest Without The Hague Tests International Law—and Trump’s Willingness to Break It
German Intelligence Secretly Intercepted Obama’s Air Force One Communications
×