A company associated with Baroness Mone has failed to meet a deadline set by the High Court to repay £122 million to the Government for providing faulty PPE. Health Secretary Wes Streeting has pledged to aggressively pursue PPE Medpro for the outstanding amount after the company missed the payment deadline. The Department of Health and Social Care successfully sued the consortium, led by Baroness Mone’s husband Doug Barrowman, for supplying 25 million substandard surgical gowns in 2020.
Mrs. Justice Cockerill has ordered PPE Medpro to reimburse the funds, along with interest, totaling over £145 million. The company filed for insolvency the day before the court ruling, with reported assets of only £666,000. Streeting emphasized that PPE Medpro must repay the outstanding amount, highlighting the urgency to return taxpayers’ money, especially during a national crisis.
The Mirror first disclosed the connections between Baroness Mone and PPE Medpro, which secured significant contracts to deliver protective gear during the pandemic. The company was referred to government officials through a controversial VIP lane in 2020 amid the Covid outbreak. Despite initially denying involvement, it later emerged that Baroness Mone and her husband had gained £65 million in profits from the company.
In 2023, the couple confessed to misleading the media regarding their association with PPE Medpro. A spokesperson for the consortium stated their willingness to engage in discussions with the Government for a potential settlement, criticizing the lack of response from the authorities.
Legal representatives for PPE Medpro argued during the trial that the company faced unfair treatment and attributed the gown defects to post-delivery storage conditions. In response to the court ruling, Baroness Mone and Mr. Barrowman claimed mistreatment by the Government and defended the quality of the supplied gowns. PPE Medpro maintains that they fulfilled their obligations and contests the court’s decision based on technical grounds.
Following the High Court’s decision, Baroness Mone has come under intense scrutiny, with a petition signed by over 285,000 individuals demanding the removal of her peerage and expulsion from the House of Lords. Although appointed as a Tory peer by David Cameron, she took a leave of absence in 2022, losing her parliamentary privileges. While removing her peerage would require legislative action, she has the option to resign from the House of Lords voluntarily.