Lingerie entrepreneur Michelle Mone 'to be made Tory peer' in the House of Lords
She has previously spoken of her support for the Prime Minister during the Scottish independence referendum campaign
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Your support makes all the difference.Michelle Mone, an entrepreneur who founded the Ultimo lingerie company, is reportedly to be made a Conservative peer.
David Cameron personally phoned her to tell her she was being given a seat in the House of Lords, The Sun reported.
Ms Mone has not confirmed the report but posted a tweet yesterday saying: “Never thought life could be this amazing. U can turn ur life around if u work hard. Massive future ahead (sic).”
The businesswoman, who was appointed an OBE in 2010 for her contribution to business, left school in Glasgow aged 15 with no qualifications.
She worked in sales and marketing before starting work on what would become Ultimo in 1996, launching the successful brand shortly after she had her third child.
The 43-year-old, said to be worth £20 million, also works as a motivational speaker and has met Prince Charles, US President Bill Clinton and the Sultan of Oman in the course of her work.
Ms Mone has appeared on The Apprentice and Celebrity Masterchef but made headlines in 2012 over claims she vandalised her husband’s Porsche, cut up his clothes and put laxatives in his coffee during their divorce.
In an interview with This Morning earlier this year, she said she was “bitter” about his alleged affair with a mutual friend and regretted her actions.
She has previously spoken about her support for the Prime Minister during the lead-up to the Scottish independence referendum, claiming would leave Scotland after becoming the target of an “extremely vitriolic social media hate campaign“ because of her open support for the Union.
When asked what her proudest moment was by the Guardian, she said: "Probably all the inventions I've created. I helped the Prime Minister with the referendum and in keeping the Union together. That was tough, but it had the most rewarding results.
“Also, receiving my OBE from the Queen. I never, ever thought I would get anything like that.”
News of Ms Mone’s reported appointment was trending on Twitter this morning, with many people expressing surprise and highlighting a tweet from 2011 where she said she was “falling asleep” at the House of Lords.
MP Stewart McDonald, who represents Glasgow South for the Scottish National Party, said on Twitter: “Yes, Michelle Mone is a successful entrepreneur, but to become a national legislator overnight without the fuss of an election is obscene.”
Others pointed out that the induction of male entrepreneurs to the House of Lords had not been met with such scrutiny and accused negative reactions of being sexist.
Downing Street declined to comment on the report.
Additional reporting by PA
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