Connect with us

Published

on

The government has issued civil legal proceedings against a firm allegedly linked to Tory peer Baroness Michelle Mone which is at the centre of a row over the supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) during the pandemic.

A Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) spokesperson said: “We can confirm that we have commenced legal proceedings in the High Court against PPE Medpro Limited for breach of contract regarding gowns delivered under a contract dated 26 June 2020.

“We do not comment on matters that are the subject of ongoing legal proceedings.”

Politics live: Health secretary says he is keen to talk to unions

PPE Medpro said the case over the supply of sterile gowns would be “rigorously defended” and accused the DHSC of a “cynical attempt to recover money from suppliers” who acted in good faith.

It said in a statement: “PPE Medpro will demonstrate to the courts that we supplied our gowns to the correct specification, on time and at a highly competitive price.

“The case will also show the utter incompetence of DHSC to correctly procure and specify PPE during the emergency procurement period. This will be the real legacy of the court case and it will be played out in the public arena for all to see.”

More on Covid-19

The company has been at the centre of a Westminster controversy, with Tory peer Baroness Michelle Mone taking a leave of absence from the Lords following allegations linking her to it.

Reports – denied by Lady Mone – have suggested the peer may have profited from the firm winning contracts worth more than £200m to supply equipment after she recommended it to ministers in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.

PPE Medpro claim the government department was fighting over “contract technicalities” such as whether gowns were single or double-bagged because it had “vastly over-ordered” protective equipment.

The firm said it had made “numerous attempts at mediation with DHSC” but “they didn’t want to settle”.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Baroness Mone has previously denied links to the company PPE Medpro which received contracts from the government to provide protective equipment.

The PPE Medpro statement said: “Over a two-month period, July through to end of August 2020, PPE Medpro supplied DHSC with 25 million sterile gowns.

“The gowns were manufactured to the correct quality, standards and specification set out in the contract, delivered on time and at a price that was 50% of what DHSC had been paying at the time.”

But “by the end of 2020 it was clear that DHSC has vastly over ordered and held five years supply of PPE across the seven major categories including gowns” and because of limited lifespans for products “it was clear that the DHSC would never be able to use all the PPE they procured”.

Read more:
Who is Michelle Mone and what is the PPE controversy swirling around the Tory peer?

“Consultants were then brought in to pick over all the contracts and fight product not on quality but on contract technicalities that were never envisaged at the time of contract.

“For example, PPE Medpro’s contract never specified double bagging of gowns. Yet it became clear in late 2020 that all the gown manufacturers who had correctly produced single bagged gowns were being unfairly challenged by DHSC.

“Despite numerous attempts at mediation with DHSC, it is clear they didn’t want to settle.

“Too many gowns and other PPE items that will never enter the supply chain. That’s why DHSC currently have 174 disputes with suppliers to a value of £4 billion. Most of this product will be incinerated or given away.”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Minister questioned over PPE contracts

Ministers are under significant pressure to explain how they assessed PPE Medpro fit to receive government contracts worth more than £200m during the pandemic.

Earlier this month, it was announced that Lady Mone would be taking a leave of absence from the House of Lords with immediate effect.

A spokesman for Lady Mone said: “With immediate effect, Baroness Mone will be taking a leave of absence from the House of Lords in order to clear her name of the allegations that have been unjustly levelled against her.”

PPE Medpro was granted contracts to make surgical gowns and masks during the COVID pandemic after Lady Mone flagged the firm to ministers through a so-called VIP lane system.

She has since faced accusations of profiting from the business, but has consistently denied any “role or function” in the company, with lawyers previously saying she is “not connected to PPE Medpro in any capacity”.

Lady Mone is currently under investigation by the House of Lords’ commissioner for standards, with parliament’s website saying the probe is over “alleged involvement in procuring contracts for PPE Medpro leading to potential breaches…of the House of Lords code of conduct”.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said earlier this month: “Due diligence was carried out on all companies that were referred to the department and every company was subjected to the same checks.

“We acted swiftly to procure PPE at the height of the pandemic, competing in an overheated global market where demand massively outstripped supply.”

Continue Reading

World

Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv – as commander ‘sacked for lying about war progress’

Published

on

By

Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv - as commander 'sacked for lying about war progress'

Russia launched a large drone attack on Kyiv overnight, with Volodymyr Zelenskyy warning the attack shows his capital needs better air defences.

Ukraine’s air defence units shot down 50 of 73 Russian drones launched, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries as a result of the attacks.

Russia has used more than 800 guided aerial bombs and around 460 attack drones in the past week.

Warning that Ukraine needs to improve its air defences, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “An air alert has been sounded almost daily across Ukraine this week”.

“Ukraine is not a testing ground for weapons. Ukraine is a sovereign and independent state.

“But Russia still continues its efforts to kill our people, spread fear and panic, and weaken us.”

Russia did not comment on the attack.

More on Russia

It comes as Russian media reported that Colonel General Gennady Anashkin, the commander of the country’s southern military district, had been removed from his role over allegedly providing misleading reports about his troops’ progress.

While Russian forces have advanced at the fastest rate in Ukraine since the start of the invasion, forces have been much slower around Siversk and the eastern region of Donetsk.

Read more:
Russia ‘ready to hit UK with cyber attacks’
Lack of defensive shield must ring alarm bells
Putin threatens West with ‘unstoppable’ missile

Russian war bloggers have long complained that units there are poorly supported and thrown into deadly battles for little tactical gain.

Russia’s ministry of defence has not commented on the reports.

Continue Reading

World

Russian forces capture ‘former British soldier’ fighting for Ukraine – reports

Published

on

By

Russian forces capture 'former British soldier' fighting for Ukraine - reports

Russian forces have reportedly captured a British man while he was fighting for Ukraine.

In a widely circulated video posted on Sunday, the man says his name is James Scott Rhys Anderson, aged 22.

He says he is a former British Army soldier who signed up to fight for Ukraine’s International Legion after his job.

He is dressed in army fatigues and speaks with an English accent as he says to camera: “I was in the British Army before, from 2019 to 2023, 22 Signal Regiment.”

He tells the camera he was “just a private”, “a signalman” in “One Signal Brigade, 22 Signal Regiment, 252 Squadron”.

“When I left… got fired from my job, I applied on the International Legion webpage. I had just lost everything. I just lost my job,” he said.

“My dad was away in prison, I see it on the TV,” he added, shaking his head. “It was a stupid idea.”

In a second video, he is shown with his hands tied and at one point, with tape over his eyes.

Read more:
Russia ‘ready to hit UK with cyber attacks’
Lack of defensive shield must ring alarm bells
Putin threatens West with ‘unstoppable’ missile

He describes how he had travelled to Ukraine from Britain, saying: “I flew to Krakow, Poland, from London Luton. Bus from there to Medyka in Poland, on the Ukraine border.”

Russian state news agency Tass reported that a military source said a “UK mercenary” had been “taken prisoner in the Kursk area” of Russia.

The UK Foreign Office said it was “supporting the family of a British man following reports of his detention”.

The Ministry of Defence has declined to comment at this stage.

Continue Reading

World

Body of missing rabbi Zvi Kogan found in UAE – as Israeli PM says he was murdered in ‘antisemitic terror incident’

Published

on

By

Body of missing rabbi Zvi Kogan found in UAE - as Israeli PM says he was murdered in 'antisemitic terror incident'

The body of an Israeli-Moldovan rabbi who went missing in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been found, Israel has said.

Zvi Kogan, the Chabad representative in the UAE, went missing on Thursday.

A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s office on Sunday said the 28-year-old rabbi was murdered, calling it a “heinous antisemitic terror incident”.

“The state of Israel will act with all means to seek justice with the criminals responsible for his death,” it said.

On Saturday, Israeli intelligence agency Mossad said it was investigating the disappearance as suspicions arose that he had been kidnapped.

The Emirati government gave no immediate acknowledgment that Mr Kogan had been found dead. Its interior ministry has described the rabbi as being “missing and out of contact”.

“Specialised authorities immediately began search and investigation operations upon receiving the report,” the interior ministry said.

Mr Kogan lived in the UAE with his wife Rivky, who is a US citizen. He ran a Kosher grocery store in Dubai, which has been the target of online protests by pro-Palestinian supporters.

The Chabad Lubavitch movement, a prominent and highly observant branch of Orthodox Judaism, said Mr Kogan was last seen in Dubai.

Read more:
Hamas claims Israeli hostage killed in IDF attack on Gaza
No 10 indicates Netanyahu would be arrested

Israeli authorities reissued their recommendation against all non-essential travel to the UAE and said visitors currently there should minimise movement and remain in secure areas.

The rabbi’s disappearance comes as Iran has threatened to retaliate against Israel after the two countries traded fire in October.

While the Israeli statement on Mr Kogan did not mention Iran, Iranian intelligence services have previously carried out kidnappings in the UAE.

The UAE diplomatically recognised Israel in 2020. Since then, synagogues and businesses catering to kosher diners have been set up for the burgeoning Jewish community but the unrest in the Middle East has sparked deep anger in the country.

Continue Reading

Trending