London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025

UK government accused of lying to public over ‘delayed’ Turkey PPE shipment, as Covid-19 criticism escalates

UK government accused of lying to public over ‘delayed’ Turkey PPE shipment, as Covid-19 criticism escalates

London only made a request to Turkey over the shipment of 84 tonnes of vital protective wear to be used in the fight against the coronavirus on Sunday – despite earlier claiming that was the day it would arrive, Sky News reports.

Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary Robert Jenrick announced on Saturday during Downing Street’s daily Covid-19 briefing that a “very significant additional shipment," including 400,000 urgently needed clinical gowns, would arrive in the UK from Turkey the following day.

The consignment has so far failed to materialize, with two Turkish sources allegedly telling Sky that authorities in Turkey – which were not supplying the shipment, but whose help was sought – didn’t receive an official request from the UK until Sunday.

The mystery surrounding the arrival of personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline health and social care workers continued over the course of the weekend, with Education Secretary Gavin Williamson saying during Sunday’s briefing that he “hoped” the delivery would turn up on Monday.

Monday came and went without any sign of the PPE delivery – and still no word from Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s administration over the exact timing of the shipment, which is only adding to the growing public anger at the handling of the coronavirus crisis. Critics have hit out at reports of shortages of gowns and other protective gear worn by medical and care home workers.

Social media has been awash with people lambasting the government for not being upfront with the British public. Some accused ministers of “blatant” “lies” and being “incompetent chancers.”

One person tweeted: “This government has reached unimaginable depths over lying to us, but this is unbelievable.” Others jokingly suggested that ministers were acting like mischievous schoolchildren trying to explain why they hadn’t done their homework.


Meanwhile, sources within UK suppliers of PPE have told The Telegraph that their warehouses are full of millions of pounds worth of the equipment, brought in from China - and which are still being shipped out overseas. The British firms claim they have offered to help plug the gaps in supplies needed for use within the UK, but have been ignored by Johnson’s administration.

UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock came under fire on Friday after sarcastically insisting he didn’t have a “magic wand” to make the vital gear “fall from the sky.” Hancock also claimed that changing advice to allow the reuse of PPE was a “clinical decision,” and blamed the shortfall in coronavirus protective kit on global shortages, rather than any failing by him or his department.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK and Vietnam Sign Landmark Migration Deal to Fast-Track Returns of Irregular Arrivals
UK Drug-Pricing Overhaul Essential for Life-Sciences Ambition, Says GSK Chief
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie Temporarily Leave the UK Amid Their Parents’ Royal Fallout
UK Weighs Early End to Oil and Gas Windfall Tax as Reeves Seeks Investment Commitments
UK Retail Inflation Slows as Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since Spring
Next Raises Full-Year Profit Guidance After Strong Third-Quarter Performance
Reform UK’s Lee Anderson Admits to 'Gaming' Benefits System While Advocating Crackdown
United States and South Korea Conclude Major Trade Accord Worth $350 Billion
Hurricane Melissa Strikes Cuba After Devastating Jamaica With Record Winds
Vice President Vance to Headline Turning Point USA Campus Event at Ole Miss
U.S. Targets Maritime Narco-Routes While Border Pressure to Mexico Remains Limited
Bill Gates at 70: “I Have a Real Fear of Artificial Intelligence – and Also Regret”
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
×