According to the government, the files are commercially sensitive and it is now in mediation regarding products supplied by PPE Medpro.
Cabinet ministers refuse to give papers on PS200m pandemic contracts to a company linked to Michelle Mone, a Conservative peer.
The government claims that the files are commercially sensitive and that it is now in mediation regarding products supplied by PPE Medpro. PPE Medpro was established in 2020 by an associate of Mone who founded Ultimo lingerie brand.
Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, stated: “The Government’s refusal to disclose the millions of taxpayers’ money that was awarded to Tory-linked Medpro is a sign of a cover up.
Medpro’s role in Mediation for the provision of useless PPE should not be a reason for not being transparent with the public. This only reinforces the need to be transparent about how this eye-watering waste occurred.”
After being established, Medpro secured the first of two PPE contracts worth more than PS203m for surgical gowns and masks.
Mone had referred Mone’s firm to the Cabinet Office via the so-called “VIP Lane.”
Later, her lawyer stated that the peer made the “simple, isolated and brief” step of referring PPE Medpro to potential suppliers but “didn’t do anything else”.
Last week, it was reported that Mone’s London residence had been raided in a fraud investigation by the National Crime Agency into PPE deals related to the firm.
Rayner wrote to the Cabinet Office: “There have long been concerns about the role played in this by Tory peer Baroness Mone.
“As a brand new company, it can’t have a track record of providing PPE to NHS and other buyers. It is also unclear what financial standing it held.”
She demanded that the Government publish all correspondence and records relating to the contracts.
Edward Argar, the Health Minister, has refused to turn over the communications.
He stated that the Departmental Records show a connection between Baroness Mone, PPE Medpro and was evident before contracts were awarded.
