Sunak takes PPE scandal involving Mone ‘incredibly seriously’
The former Tory peer faced calls not to return to the Lords after admitting she lied about her links to a controversial PPE firm.
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Your support makes all the difference.Rishi Sunak said he takes the scandal surrounding Baroness Michelle Mone’s involvement in a PPE firm “incredibly seriously”, as the former Tory peer faced calls not to return to the House of Lords.
Lady Mone has admitted she lied when she repeatedly denied having links to PPE Medpro, which made millions of pounds in profits from a Government deal to supply personal protective equipment during the pandemic.
She should not be sitting in the Lords, Sir Keir Starmer said as he called on the Government to answer “serious questions” about the “shocking disgrace” of a situation.
The Prime Minister pointed to the Government’s legal case against PPE Medpro, but refused to comment further.
Asked about Lady Mone’s dishonesty during a Scotland trip on Monday, Mr Sunak told reporters: “The Government takes these things incredibly seriously, which is why we’re pursuing legal action against the company concerned in these matters.
“That’s how seriously I take it and the Government takes it. But it is also subject to an ongoing criminal investigation. And because of that, there’s not much further that I can add.”
The Government last December issued breach of contract proceedings against PPE Medpro over the 2020 deal on the supply of sterile gowns. The firm is defending the legal action.
The company is also being investigated by the National Crime Agency into suspected criminal offences in the procurement of PPE contracts.
I don't think she should be in the Lords
Lady Mone’s first major broadcast interview since the scandal emerged saw her admit she did not tell the truth about her connection to the company, while insisting that lying to the media was “not a crime”.
Lady Mone, who was made a Conservative peer by David Cameron in 2015, has been on a leave of absence from the Lords and without the Tory whip since December 2022.
But her appearance on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme, during which she admitted standing to benefit from the deal between the Government and PPE Medpro after she recommended it to ministers, saw her facing renewed criticism.
Labour is piling pressure on the Government to “come clean” about what ministers knew after she name-checked Michael Gove in the interview.
She said she contacted the then-chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster at the start of the pandemic to offer help, to which his reaction was “this is amazing”.
Speaking during a visit to Leeds, Labour leader Sir Keir said: “This is a shocking disgrace from top to bottom. And, as every day goes past, there are more questions that need to be answered.
“There’s now suggestions there was early private contact with members of the Cabinet that may have started this unhappy story in the first place. So the Government needs come clean.”
He urged Mr Gove to make a statement in the Commons.
Asked if Lady Mone should be expelled from the Lords, Sir Keir said: “I don’t think she should be in the Lords. I think the Government should be held to account for this.”
A Tory minister echoed calls for her not to return to the upper chamber.
“I think she should have declared her involvement in that in the House of Lords register, and there is guidance available for that,” energy efficiency minister Lord Callanan told Sky News.
“I would hope that she would not be coming back to the House of Lords.”