Christmas preparations on the Isle of Man – but there’s no sign of Michelle Mone at her luxury home

Published

2 years ago

December 10, 2022

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She is no stranger to the spotlight. A book deal, regular television appearances and a prolific presence on Instagram, all part of a carefully crafted public image that helped Michelle Mone secure a peerage in 2015.

Yet, Baroness Mone – or “Lady M” as she often refers to herself – has been keeping a low profile in recent weeks.

A series of damaging allegations have thrust the lingerie entrepreneur and Conservative peer into the centre of an alleged scandal that is engulfing the House of Lords.

She is accused of attempting to “bully and hector” ministers into awarding public PPE contracts worth more than £200m to a company called PPE Medpro during the pandemic and of profiting from the deal – a claim she strongly denies.

Having now taken a leave of absence from the House of Lords, Lady Mone says she wants to clear her name but she has been noticeably quiet so far.

On the Isle of Man, at the 154 acre-estate she shares with her husband Douglas Barrowman, preparations are under way for the festive period.

Christmas trees, wreaths and decorations adorn the home, but staff – who have been told not to speak to journalists – insist they have no idea where the couple are.

It’s a peaceful corner of the island and the gated property may offer Mone some refuge from the growing scandal – but the issue is not going away any time soon.

The House of Lords is looking into whether Mone broke any rules and the National Crime Agency has launched a fraud investigation into PPE Medpro, whose gowns were unusable because they failed NHS checks.

A number of official reports will follow but Lady Mone’s representatives have described it as a “witch hunt”.

At the centre of the storm is Michelle and her husband Douglas. According to files compiled by HSBC, which were first obtained by The Guardian, accounts linked to Barrowman, and later Mone, received millions of pounds in transfers from PPE Medpro.

Another leaked document lists PPE Medpro as an “entity” of Barrowman’s family office, the Knox family office on the Isle of Man.

It was prepared by Anthony Page, a finance director at one of its trusts and the registered owner of PPE Medpro.

At his home in the centre of the Isle, Mr Page was keeping a low profile.

He refused to speak when Sky News approached him for an interview.

Neighbours described him as “a very pleasant family man” and said they were surprised by the news of his involvement in the scandal.

Situation needs ‘proper investigation’

Residents told us that news usually travels fast on the Isle of Man, but there was a sense of resignation about the latest revelations. A feeling that this is just another Westminster scandal.

Frank Schuengel, a councillor for Douglas South Ward, said: “It’s a big topic in the UK, probably more there (than here) because we don’t have a House of Lords. It’s not applicable, we have our own government.

“It’s not the kind of politics that I would personally do but I’m sure there will be processes and investigations.

“It’s a shame whenever someone doesn’t act in a way that you would wish all politicians to act.

“But I think it’s being investigated and if something is not right, one would hope that any investigation would uncover that.”

Some wanted to avoid jumping to conclusions before investigations are completed, but others had already made up their minds.

On Strand Street, the main shopping high street in Douglas, one local resident said: “It is disappointing. I think that anybody that does that kind of thing just isn’t really a moral person. So, it’s a bad example. Hopefully more will come to light.”

Another added: “I just think it’s awful. There were a lot of irregularities surrounding all the PPE supplies during the pandemic. As far as Michelle Mone is concerned… and the situation around it, I think needs proper investigation.”

‘Corruption at the highest levels’

Mone’s lawyers claim she only made the “simple, solitary and brief step,” of referring the company to the government.

They insist she and her husband, Douglas, had no involvement in PPE Medpro, nor did they play any role in the process through which it was awarded its government contract.

That was before a series of damaging emails appeared to show her pressuring ministers to award PPE Medpro government contracts.

At the height of the pandemic, she wrote to former health secretary Matt Hancock, allegedly saying: “I am going to blow this all wide open.

“I smell a rat here. It’s more than the usual red tape, incompetence and bureaucracy. That’s expected! I believe there is corruption here at the highest levels and a cover up is taking place… Don’t say I didn’t warn you when Panorama or Horizon run an exposé documentary on all this.

“I say a level playing field for all.”

PPE Medpro was later awarded two contracts worth more than £200m without tender. The entire process is now coming under intense scrutiny.

Lady Mone foresaw this – but she probably didn’t expect to be at the centre of it all.

World

Donald Trump says EU was ‘formed to screw the United States’ and threatens 25% tariffs

Published

5 hours ago

February 26, 2025

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Donald Trump says EU was 'formed to screw the United States' and threatens 25% tariffs

Donald Trump has said he will impose 25% tariffs on the EU “very soon” and claimed the bloc was “formed in order to screw the United States”.

The US president made the remarks while holding his first cabinet meeting at the White House since his inauguration in January.

The world’s richest man Elon Musk, who leads the US Department of Government Efficiency but is not a cabinet member, was among those present.

During his second term as president, Mr Trump has sparked fears of a global trade war by either imposing, or threatening to impose, high tariffs on both America’s allies and geopolitical rivals.

Earlier this month the US government imposed 25% tariffs on goods imported from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on imports from China.

Beijing retaliated by imposing 10% duties on many US imports and 15% tariffs on coal and liquefied natural gas.

Meanwhile, the 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada were paused after agreements were reached on border security.

‘They’ve taken advantage of us’

Asked whether he had made a decision about imposing tariffs on the European Union, Mr Trump said: “We have made a decision, we’ll be announcing it very soon and it will be 25% generally speaking and that will be on cars and all other things.

“The European Union is a different case than Canada, a different kind of case, they’ve really taken advantage of us in a different way.

“They don’t accept our cars, they don’t accept essentially our farm products. They use all sorts of reasons why not, and we accept everything from them, and we have about a $300bn (£237bn) deficit with the European Union.”

He added: “The European Union, it was formed in order to screw the United States.

“Let’s be honest – the European Union was formed in order to screw the United States, that’s the purpose of it, and they’ve done a good job of it, but now I’m president.”

Asked what he will do if the EU retaliates, Mr Trump said: “They can’t, I mean, they can try, but they can’t.”

He added: “They can retaliate, but it cannot be a successful retaliation, because we just go cold turkey, we don’t buy anymore.

“If that happens, we win.”

The threat of tariffs comes at a time of fragile relations between the US and Europe as the Trump administration appears to favour Moscow over Kyiv as it tries to bring about peace in Ukraine.

Mr Trump shocked European leaders last week by calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “dictator with no elections”.

Mr Zelenskyy accused the US president of living in a Russian-made “disinformation space”.

Ukraine to sign ‘very big’ deal

Asked at the cabinet meeting about security guarantees the US might be willing to offer Ukraine as part of peace negotiations, Mr Trump said: “I’m not going to make security guarantees beyond very much.

“We’re going to have Europe do that, because we’re talking about Europe as the next-door neighbour.”

Mr Trump also said Mr Zelenskyy will visit the US on Friday to sign a “very big” minerals deal.

The US president views the transaction with Ukraine as a fair way to recoup the billions of dollars that America has given Kyiv – via weapons and financial support – to help in their fight against Russia.

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Mr Trump went on to describe Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “very smart” and “very cunning person” during the cabinet meeting.

He said: “I think he wanted the whole (of Ukraine) when I got elected, (then) we spoke, and I think we’re going to have a deal.”

Ukraine NATO membership ruled out

Mr Trump also said he believes Mr Putin would never have invaded Ukraine if he was US president at the time.

Asked whether Ukraine could gain NATO membership, the US president said: “You can forget about it. That’s probably the reason the whole thing started.”

Mr Trump declined to comment when asked about whether he would ever allow China to take control of Taiwan by force.

“I never comment on that,” said. “I don’t want to ever put myself in that position.”

Mr Musk spoke briefly at the start of the meeting to explain why he believes the controversial cost-cutting measures his department has been carrying out have been necessary.

Cabinet members were then asked by reporters if they were happy with Mr Musk and how he has been carrying out his role.

Mr Musk started to answer the question, but Mr Trump interjected and said he might want to let cabinet members answer, before joking that if anyone disagreed, he might “throw them out”.

World

Trump shares AI video of Gaza vision featuring golden statues, bearded belly dancers and Netanyahu on a sunbed

Published

11 hours ago

February 26, 2025

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Trump shares AI video of Gaza vision featuring golden statues, bearded belly dancers and Netanyahu on a sunbed

Donald Trump has shared a bizarre AI-generated video on his Truth Social platform showcasing what appears to be a vision of Gaza under his proposed plan.

The footage, which the 78-year-old shared without comment, shows the war-ravaged territory before a caption appears: “Gaza 2025… What’s Next?”

It then goes on to show the area transformed into a Middle Eastern paradise with exotic beaches, Dubai-style skyscrapers, luxury yachts and people partying.

It includes a “Trump Gaza” tower and a gigantic, golden statue of the US president – with miniature versions on sale in a souvenir gift shop.

A child is also shown walking in a street, holding a huge, golden balloon of the president’s head.

The video also features the world leader dancing with a scantily clad belly dancer in a bar – and sunbathing and sipping cocktails by a hotel resort pool with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Elon Musk appears in the footage several times – sitting on a beach eating humous with flatbreads as bearded belly dancers perform on the sand.

The billionaire boss of X, Tesla and SpaceX – who also leads the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) which has been tasked with cutting government spending – is also shown throwing dollar bills in the air for people.

A song written for the video also plays in the background.

The lyrics go: “Donald’s coming to set you free, bringing the light for all to see, no more tunnels, no more fear: Trump Gaza’s finally here.

“Trump Gaza’s shining bright, golden future, a brand new life.

“Feast and dance the deal is done, Trump Gaza number one.”

Sky News has established the video was first shared online in early February by accounts with no apparent connection to the White House.

Mr Trump announced his plan – for when the war between Israel and Hamas ends – earlier this year.

It includes relocating two million Gazans to neighbouring Arab countries and developing the territory into the “Riviera of the Middle East“.

He described Gaza as a “demolition site” where “virtually every building is down”.

Laying out his idea of what would happen beyond an Israel-Hamas ceasefire, he proposed: “The US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it too.”

He said America would be “responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site”, before it would “get rid of the destroyed buildings”, and “level it out”.

“Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs,” he added.

The White House described the proposal as “out-of-the-box” and “visionary” – but it was condemned as the effective “ethnic cleansing” of Palestinians from Gaza.

Hamas described the proposals as “ridiculous and absurd” in a statement from one of its officials.

Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia, which as fellow Arab nations support the Palestinian cause, also rejected Mr Trump’s plan.

There was a mixed reaction to the video in the comments section below.

One person wrote: “I don’t think that’s funny or cool. Sorry. Am I missing something??? I hope it’s a joke a bad joke..”

“I hate this. I love our president, but this is horrible,” said another.

One Truth Social user wrote: “Mr President while I appreciate what you do, is not about you. To God be the glory and the honor, for without Him, you couldn’t have accomplished anything. The statue is a symbol of the antichrist, please humble yourself to God. Jesus is king and only Him.”

“You’re doing great Mr President. But don’t let it get to your head. God put you in that position for His Glory, not yours,” said another.

“Can we transform our US cities to look like this 2025 vision first? Our cities are dumps with ugly buildings and homeless people,” wrote one user.

“Everything looks good, just stay away from these guys,” said another, reposting a screengrab of the bearded belly dancers.

World

Trump posts AI video of Gaza vision featuring golden statues, bearded belly dancers and Netanyahu on a sunbed

Published

16 hours ago

February 26, 2025

admin

Trump posts AI video of Gaza vision featuring golden statues, bearded belly dancers and Netanyahu on a sunbed

Donald Trump has shared a bizarre AI-generated video on his Truth Social social media platform showcasing what appears to be his vision of Gaza under his proposed plan.

The footage, which the 78-year-old posted without comment, shows the war-ravaged territory before a caption appears: “Gaza 2025… What’s Next?”

It then goes on to show the area transformed into a Middle Eastern paradise with exotic beaches, Dubai-style skyscrapers, luxury yachts and people partying.

It includes a “Trump Gaza” tower and a gigantic, golden statue of the US president – with miniature versions on sale in a souvenir gift shop.

A child is also shown walking in a street, holding a huge, golden balloon of the president’s head.

Elon Musk appears in the footage several times – sitting on a beach eating humous with flatbreads as bearded belly dancers perform on the sand.

A song written for the video also plays in the background.

The lyrics go: “Donald’s coming to set you free, bringing the light for all to see, no more tunnels, no more fear: Trump Gaza’s finally here.

“Trump Gaza’s shining bright, golden future, a brand new life.

“Feast and dance the deal is done, Trump Gaza number one.”

Sky News has established that the video was first shared online in early February by accounts with no apparent connection to the White House.