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PRESS RELEASE : The devastating humanitarian impact of Russia’s systematic strikes on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure – UK statement at the Security Council [December 2022]
The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 6 December 2022.

Statement by Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the Security Council briefing on the humanitarian situation in Ukraine.

Thank you President. And thank you Under-Secretary-General Griffiths for your briefing.

“Death, destruction, displacement and suffering,” as you said.

President, this is the third time in as many weeks that we have discussed Russia’s brutal attacks on civilians across Ukraine.

On all three occasions, the UN has underlined the devastating humanitarian impact of the systematic strikes on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure and civilian centres. This presents a potentially catastrophic situation for Ukraine’s brave and courageous people and for the 690 organisations that are supporting the humanitarian need as winter begins, and people are left without water, power and shelter.

We know what Russia is trying to do: it is trying to bring terror and suffering to the civilian population in a war of subjugation. It is barbaric, illegal, and horribly cruel.

The statistics we have heard from the UN today are shocking, more than 17,000 civilians have been killed in Ukraine by Russia’s senseless war. It is a devastating number of innocent lives lost, and we’ve heard today in particular the impact Russia’s war is having on children in Ukraine:
- the millions forced to flee their homes and in need of humanitarian assistance,
- the hundreds killed, injured or missing.
- the damage or destruction of over 500 schools, and classes interrupted by air raid sirens and power cuts.
- the reports that thousands of children have been forcibly taken to Russia.
- And the credible allegations of sexual violence against children by Russian forces.
The trauma inflicted by Russia will last for generations.

President, the response from this Council, and the wider UN Membership, has been consistent: a call for an end to conflict; for peace.

President Zelenskyy again asked us, two weeks ago, to help end the suffering of the Ukrainian people and expressed his willingness to negotiate a peace based on the principles of the UN Charter.

But Russia is not listening.

Its response has been wave after wave of long range strikes, and continued, albeit frustrated, efforts to take Ukrainian territory.

It is time for Russia to end this war, withdraw from Ukrainian territory, and commit to dialogue and negotiations based on international law and the UN Charter.

Thank you, Madam President.
07/12/2022
PRESS RELEASE : Arrests follow investigation into Bolivian people-smuggling ring [December 2022]
The press release issued by the Home Office on 6 December 2022.
Suspected members of an Organised Crime Group (OCG) linked to a highly sophisticated people-smuggling operation between Bolivia and the UK, have been arrested this morning (Tuesday 6 December) following a series of warrants executed in South London.

Following an investigation by Home Office officials from the Criminal and Financial Investigations (CFI) team, three individuals, two men and one woman, were arrested at two addresses on suspicion of conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration.

The arrests included:

a man aged 41 years at an address in Camberwell

a man aged 38 years and a woman aged 35 years at an address in Peckham

Two further individuals, a man and a woman, were located in the Peckham property and identified as illegal migrants from Bolivia. They will be processed and dealt with by Immigration Compliance and Enforcement accordingly.

Around £1,500 in cash and two false identity documents were also discovered at the same address. Money seized will be processed using proceeds of crime legislation, while searches of both properties continue.

Robert Jenrick, Immigration Minister said:

The public should be in no doubt of our determination to clamp down on those who violate our laws by exploiting people for their own financial gains.

These individuals thought they were beyond the reach of the law – they were proved wrong.

Today’s operation sends a clear message to people smugglers and those thinking about abusing our immigration laws: you will be caught and brought to justice swiftly.

Tony Hilton, Assistant Director from the Criminal Financial Investigation unit said:

Thanks to the tireless efforts of our officers, we continue to investigate leads relentlessly and execute operations like this so that we can stop and arrest those profiting off abuse of our immigration system.

The individuals are believed to have been abusing the Common Travel Area between Dublin and Belfast, charging migrants thousands of pounds to be flown from Bolivia to the UK via the Republic of Ireland.

Once smuggled into the country by the OCG, most of the migrants are believed to have been working here illegally.

All suspects were taken into custody in South London, and will be flown today to Belfast, Northern Ireland, for questioning by CFI Northern Ireland.

A further individual associated with the investigation was arrested in September 2022 by Immigration Enforcement officers in Northern Ireland and subsequently charged. He remains in custody.

This investigation involves ongoing collaboration between the British and Irish governments, who work closely through the Cross-Border Joint Agency Taskforce to disrupt OCGs and tackle organised immigration crime, modern slavery and human trafficking.

Today’s raid forms part of Immigration Enforcement’s ongoing work to prevent illegal migration through their investigation work. As of November, 189 people have been convicted for immigration crimes resulting in a total of nearly 179 years in sentencing.

So far this year, there have been 52 convictions relating to people smuggling cases, resulting in a combined total of over 82 years in prosecutions. This includes 21 small-boats-related convictions for a total of over 11 years and 31 convictions for facilitating migrants in vehicles for a total of over 72 years.
07/12/2022
PRESS RELEASE : Ministry of Defence confirms the death of Private Josh Kennington [December 2022]

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 6 December 2022.

It is with great sadness that the Ministry of Defence confirms the death of Private Joshua Kennington of the Royal Logistic Corps. He died on 24th November 2022 following a non-operational incident at Catterick. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this sad time.

Private Kennington’s family said:

Tragically taken from us far too soon, much loved by family and friends, Josh was kind compassionate always having time for others and putting them first constantly striving to push himself to be better. He died doing what he loved. Not a goodbye from us, wherever you will be you will always be in our hearts…

Major Tony Morgan – Officer Commanding 35 Squadron, 5 Medical Regiment said:

Private Josh Kennington was a young and popular member of 35 Medical Squadron. He had only been with the Squadron for a short time, but his good humoured and likeable nature made him an instant hit. A spirited individual, always willing to do what was needed, Private Kennington was an excellent soldier and a proud RLC Driver, the epitome of our most talented younger generation.

His death is a sad loss, at such a young age and at the beginning of a bright military career ahead of him. Although this is a sad moment for all that knew Private Kennington, we do feel fortunate to have known and to have served alongside this soldier. He will be missed; he will be celebrated and he will be remembered by all those within 35 Medical Squadron.”

Lieutenant Colonel Catherine Masling – Commanding Officer, 5 Medical Regiment said:

Pte Josh Kennington was a superb soldier with ability beyond his years and a bright future before him. He was a true professional, determined to do well whatever the task, and keen to take advantage of everything which the Army has to offer. Known to all, and a good friend to many, Pte Kennington was a genuine, kind, and decent person. He made our team stronger. His sudden passing is felt deeply within our Regiment, especially by those whom he directly served alongside. He was our friend and our comrade; we are immensely proud of him. We will miss him, and we will remember him with affection. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this very difficult time.

Minister for Defence People, Veterans and Service Families Dr Andrew Murrison said:

It is with deep sadness that I learnt of the death of Private Josh Kennington of 5 Medical Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps. He displayed a natural aptitude for soldiering and it’s clear from his colleagues that he was admired and respected by all those he served with, irrespective of their rank. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones at this difficult time.

07/12/2022
Andrew Murrison – 2022 Comments on the Death of Private Josh Kennington

The comments made by Andrew Murrison, the Minister of State at the MOD, on 6 December 2022.

It is with deep sadness that I learnt of the death of Private Josh Kennington of 5 Medical Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps. He displayed a natural aptitude for soldiering and it’s clear from his colleagues that he was admired and respected by all those he served with, irrespective of their rank. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones at this difficult time.

07/12/2022
Stephanie Peacock – 2022 Parliamentary Question on Waiting Times for Neurological Diagnosis and Treatment

The parliamentary question asked by Stephanie Peacock, the Labour MP for Barnsley East, in the House of Commons on 6 December 2022.

Stephanie Peacock (Barnsley East) (Lab)

What recent steps his Department has taken to reduce waiting times for neurological diagnosis and treatment.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Maria Caulfield)

Reducing waiting times for diagnostics and treatment is a priority for this Government. The delivery plan for tackling the elective backlog sets out steps to recover and transform out-patient services across all specialisms, including neurology.

Stephanie Peacock

In March 2021, my constituent suffered a severe head injury. By the time they have their first neurology appointment in January 2023, they will have waited nearly two years for treatment. In the meantime, they have been unable to work, been rejected for disability benefits and are in severe pain. Does the Minister accept that this wait is unacceptable, and will she outline what support the Department is making available for those who are suffering while they wait for vital appointments?

Maria Caulfield

I thank the hon. Lady. I know she raised her constituent’s case in a Westminster Hall debate on 22 November and my understanding is that they now have an appointment for January, but there is absolutely a backlog from covid patients. We know that. That is why we are putting in over £8 billion in the next three years to deal with that backlog. That is in addition to the £2 billion we have already provided through the elective recovery fund. We have already virtually eliminated the two-year wait and we are now on track, by April, to eliminate waits of 18 months or more.

07/12/2022
Andy Carter – 2022 Parliamentary Question on Hospital Bed Capacity

The parliamentary question asked by Andy Carter, the Conservative MP for Warrington South, in the House of Commons on 6 December 2022.

Andy Carter (Warrington South) (Con)

What steps his Department is taking to increase hospital bed capacity.

The Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Will Quince)

To support operational resilience, the NHS has set out plans to increase hospital bed capacity by the equivalent of at least 7,000 general and acute beds during the winter. That is alongside £500 million of funding to support quick, safe discharge from hospital and free up capacity, and £1.5 billion of targeted investment funding for new surgical hubs, increasing bed capacity and equipment for elective care recovery.

Andy Carter

I am grateful for the Minister’s response. Over the last 20 years, Warrington has had among the highest level of new houses built in the north-west of England, but our healthcare infrastructure has not kept pace. We desperately need a new hospital. Our accident and emergency is at breaking point, we do not have enough beds and there is nowhere for those visiting to park their cars. In 2021, my NHS trust submitted a bid to the Department of Health and Social Care for a new hospital. Will he update us on where we are with that process?

Will Quince

I thank my hon. Friend, who has been a long-standing advocate for a new general hospital for Warrington. The expression of interest from the trust has been received. We are currently in the process of reviewing expressions of interest for the eight new hospitals and aim to announce a final decision by the end of the year. I recently met him to hear about the plans, and the people of Warrington could not have a greater champion than him.

07/12/2022
Neil O’Brien – 2022 Speech on Government Handling of PPE Contracts

The speech made by Neil O’Brien, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, in the House of Commons on 6 December 2022.

To make sure that I get to them, I want to respond to some of the important points made by Back-Bench Members at the start of my remarks. The hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull East (Karl Turner), who is sadly no longer in his place, mentioned Arco not getting a contract. My understanding is that it did get a contract, so we should resolve what is correct.

The hon. Member for Argyll and Bute (Brendan O’Hara) mentioned the two different contracts for PPE Medpro, and it is important to be clear that one of those contracts was delivered—the PPE was delivered and that was fine—and one did not, and that is the one we are taking enforcement action on. With all these contracts, we are just as keen as everybody else to make sure that we get good value for money for taxpayers and we enforce whenever things have not been delivered.

The hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Nick Smith) called for the publication of details of companies that were in the high-priority group and then got contracts, which is something that happened in November 2021. I slightly disagree with one point that the hon. Member for Bradford West (Naz Shah) made: the argument that we should not have had any contracts with firms that had not previously been PPE suppliers. Of course lots of new firms were coming into the market, and part of our drive to get more UK supply relied on that very point.

Nick Smith rose—

Neil O’Brien

I am just going to complete my tour of people’s contributions.

The hon. Member for Brent Central (Dawn Butler) said that we should donate and reuse PPE, and I am pleased to tell her that that is precisely what we are doing. The hon. Member for Edinburgh West (Christine Jardine) said that we are in the middle of a major cost of living issue, and she is absolutely correct. That is why we are spending £55 billion on energy support, why we have the £900 payment for 8 million poorer households and why we are raising the national living wage to a record level—that is worth about £1,600 for a full-time worker.

The hon. Members for Blackburn (Kate Hollern) and for Llanelli (Dame Nia Griffith)—

Several hon. Members rose—

Neil O’Brien

I will give way, but I am trying to respond to everyone’s points first. If Members can hold on, we will get there.

As I was saying, those two Members both made the point that we wanted to get more UK producers making PPE. The Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Care, my hon. Friend the Member for Colchester (Will Quince), has already made the point that we have gone from 1% of FFP3 masks being made in the UK to 75%. I should also mention our work with Moderna to get more development and production of vaccines happening in the UK as part of that exciting deal.

The hon. Member for Glenrothes (Peter Grant) said that one potential supplier had been incandescent with rage because they did not get a contract. That is the system working. People were being turned down for contracts; 90% of those who went through the—[Laughter.] Madam Deputy Speaker, I am desperately trying to respond to all the points. [Interruption.]

Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Eleanor Laing)

Order. Give the Minister a chance to respond to all the questions. I have tried to give enough time for that, so let him get on with it.

Neil O’Brien

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I am keen to reply to them. The hon. Gentleman said that only 3%—

Peter Grant rose—

Neil O’Brien

I am literally responding to the hon. Gentleman. He talked about only 3% not being reusable and implied that some of the other things were only fit for servicing a car. To be clear, some of these things have a different clinical use. For example, the NHS tends to use and wants to use aprons on a roll when there is the choice, where we have a normal PPE market. What we do therefore is use the flat-pack ones that we had and donate them to care homes. Self-assembly visors are not preferred in the NHS because they take a bit of time to assemble, so we give them to dentists and the like.

We have heard two different uses of the words “writing off” in this debate, and it is important to be clear about the difference between these two things. Some people talk about “writing off” for things that are not usable, and only 3% of what was purchased is in that category. Then there is a different accounting use of “writing off”, which is something we have to do; we bought a load of PPE because we needed it in the middle of the pandemic and it was more expensive at that time—it was worth more then than it is now. That is the accounting meaning of “writing off”. Let us be clear about those two different uses.

Several hon. Members rose—

Neil O’Brien

There are so many questions that I do not know who to give way to, but I think I should start with the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent.

Nick Smith

I thank the Minister for giving way. He attributed comments to me that I did not make, and I just want to put that on the record. I do have a question for him: does he accept that excessive profits have been made on the back of some of these PPE contracts?

Neil O’Brien

I am about to explain the due process that we went through and the incredibly forensic work that our civil servants did. Just to be clear—again, for the benefit of the House—Ministers did not make decisions on contracts. Officials, as usual, made the decisions on contracts. I will talk more about the process that we went through in the very short time that we have remaining.

During the dark days of the pandemic, we had a collective approach that saw hundreds of millions of life-saving vaccine doses delivered, the largest testing infrastructure in Europe established from a standing start and the distribution of tens of millions of items of PPE. It was a uniquely complex challenge even in normal times, but a particular challenge when the entire world was trying to get these goods. [Interruption.] Opposition Members might want to have the courtesy to listen to the answers of the questions that they have asked—a strange approach.

We delivered 20 billion items to the frontline and to our broader workforce—we are still in fact delivering 5 million items a months. That was enough to deliver a response to a worst-case scenario, which, fortunately, did not emerge. That is why we have that 20% excess stock that I mentioned earlier. It is simply not the case, as one hon. Member mentioned, that we had five times too much PPE. However, let us remember the context. It was the former Leader of the Opposition, the right hon. Member for Islington North (Jeremy Corbyn), who said that it was a “matter of safety” and of patients’ safety. We agreed, which is why we acted. It was the shadow Health Secretary who said:

“Our NHS and social care staff deserve the very best protective clothing…and they urgently need…it.”

We agreed. It was the current shadow Chancellor who called for a

“national effort which leaves no stone unturned”.

That is exactly what we did. [Interruption.]

Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Eleanor Laing)

Stop shouting!

Neil O’Brien

What did the hon. Member for Brent Central say there? [Interruption.] No, she does not want to repeat it.

Let me be clear, Madam Deputy Speaker: at every point in the procurement process, the process is rightly run by our brilliant commercial professionals. Ministers are not involved in the procurement process; Ministers are not involved in the value of contracts. Ministers are not involved in the scope of contracts, and Ministers are not involved in the length of contracts. That is something echoed by the National Audit Office, whose report concluded that the Ministers had properly declared their interests and that there was

“no evidence of their involvement in procurement decisions or contract management”.

The role of Ministers was exactly what we would expect. Approaches from suppliers were passed on to civil servants for an independent assessment. Let us again look at the scale of the effort: 19,000 companies made offers, around 430 were processed through the high-priority group, and only 12% of those resulted in a contract for 51 firms. That group was primarily about managing the many, many requests that were coming in to Ministers from people across the House and from people across the country who were desperate to help with that national challenge of getting more PPE, and there had to be a way of dealing with them. To be clear, due diligence was carried out on every single company, financial accountability sat with a senior civil servant, all procurement decisions were taken by civil servants, and a team of more than 400 civil servants processed referrals and undertook due diligence checks. It was a huge operation run by the civil service, and I thank them for their work in getting our NHS the PPE that it needed.

Let me be clear, I will not stand here and say that there are not any lessons to be learned; of course there are. But we should be clear about what those lessons are. Despite the global race to get PPE, only 3% of the materials sourced were fit for purpose, but we have built more resilient supply chains. We are implementing the recommendations of the Boardman review of pandemic procurement in full. I have mentioned the growth of UK procurement of face masks and of vaccines.

In closing, I wish to thank all of those who have been involved in this important conversation. We should be rightly proud of what was achieved during those dark and difficult days at the start of the pandemic, operating in conditions of considerable uncertainty. We were in a situation where, literally, there was gazumping going on. If people did not turn up with the cash, things were removed that they had bought from the warehouses. That was the global race that we were in to source these things. The 400-strong team of civil servants who led this process did a remarkable job from a standing start of sourcing the goods that we needed.

During this debate, we have heard a number of deliberate obfuscations of the different things that Ministers and officials do. To be clear, all of these decisions went through an eight-stage forensic process that was run entirely by officials and it did not get anyone a contract to go into this high-priority group. It was simply about managing the sheer number of bids for contracts that were coming in to people across this House. At the time, although memories are very short and the barracking on this continued—

Sir Alan Campbell (Tynemouth) (Lab) claimed to move the closure (Standing Order No. 36).

Question put forthwith, That the Question be now put.

Question agreed to.

Main Question accordingly put and agreed to.

07/12/2022
Fleur Anderson – 2022 Speech on Government Handling of PPE Contracts

The speech made by Fleur Anderson, the Labour MP for Putney, in the House of Commons on 6 December 2022.

I am delighted to be able to close today’s debate on behalf of His Majesty’s Opposition, and I share the indignation of my right hon. Friend the Member for Ashton-under-Lyne (Angela Rayner), the shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, that we are once again having to come here to table a Humble Address to force the Government to come clean with the British public. It is all about transparency, and there are questions that need to be answered. Conservative Members can either support today’s binding vote to force Ministers to come clean, or they can be complicit in the continuing cover-up. The choice is theirs, and their constituents are watching.

The VIP lane is a national scandal that will cast a long shadow for years to come. It takes us back to the dark days of 2020 when covid was spreading, when people were dying and when there was not enough PPE for frontline workers. Schools donated goggles. Volunteers sewed gowns in their homes. Nurses and care home workers had to resort to wearing bin bags. My hon. Friends the Members for Blaenau Gwent (Nick Smith), for Brent Central (Dawn Butler), for Bradford West (Naz Shah), for Nottingham East (Nadia Whittome) and for Llanelli (Dame Nia Griffith) have articulated well the anger that is felt by our constituents across the country, who want to have their questions answered.

The shift to procurement was necessary; no one is denying that. We had to have fast procurement, but that did not need to lead to all procurement procedures being jettisoned along the way, resulting in the failure to provide usable PPE, the granting of huge contracts to shell companies, the industrial-scale waste of taxpayers’ money and then an industrial-scale cover-up. A total of £12.6 billion was spent on PPE, but £8 billion of that was written off. We know that £4 billion-worth of PPE was not up to standard and was unusable, that £3.6 billion-worth of contracts raised one or more red flags for possible corruption, according to Transparency International, and that 176 contracts worth £2.6 billion are now in legal dispute.

The consequences continue, as we have heard from Members today. Up to three weeks ago, £770,000 was being spent every day to store the faulty PPE here and in China. I had to check that several times; it could not be right. Were we really spending £770,000 every day? That was over £5 million a week, or £280 million a year. That is enough to pay for free school meals for all the primary schoolchildren in Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and Nottingham put together, or to pay 8,000 nurses a year. I have heard the clarification from the Minister that the amount has been reduced, and that is welcome, but we are still spending £400,000 a day and 120 million PPE items are being stored in China. What is going on? I speak today for the millions who are sat in freezing homes relying on food banks during this cost of living crisis and hearing that Britain is being ripped off by the Tories.

The British Medical Association’s chair of council said:

“The deadly mismanagement around the supply of PPE is one of the greatest failings of this Government’s handling of the pandemic”.

There must be a reckoning.

The Government had been in power for a decade when covid began, but they did not have good enough emergency plans in place, which is why they did not have enough stockpiles of PPE and had to panic buy. They bypassed existing, scaled-up, British-based providers of PPE, and they chose shell companies that had no experience. They gave huge contracts and jettisoned good contracting procedures. Other countries managed to do it at the time, and we should have been able to do it, too.

It is fair enough to move to emergency contracting, to streamline and speed up contracting, but no checks on companies? No checks to see if the masks met NHS standards? Did no Minister intervene and say, “This is not right. Emergency procurement procedures do not mean no procurement procedures”? Did no Minister say, “Assure me that these companies can deliver. This is taxpayers’ money”? Did no Minister say, “Assure me that the VIP lane is not being used by mates, donors and pub landlords to get contracts ahead of actual PPE contractors”? Did no Minister say, “Assure me that the contracts ensure the taxpayer will not pay for faulty PPE”? It seems not.

What happened was wrong, and it is disappointing that Ministers keep defending it. If Ministers do not own this and admit it was wrong, they will not make the necessary changes, and it could well happen again. Everyone in the country knows it to be true that the first instinct of the Conservative party, if there were another pandemic or emergency tomorrow, would not be to go to correct procurement procedures and to make sure that our taxpayers’ money is not spent wrongly.

I will tell the House about two types of company. The first is Arco, and Members have talked about others. Arco is a Hull-based market leader in PPE production. It has 135 years’ experience, works with 110,000 customers and holds key framework agreements, including with NHS Supply Chain. It is very experienced in providing expert advice and appropriate and compliant PPE during epidemics, including foot and mouth, mad cow disease, swine flu and Ebola.

Arco has its own accredited product assurance lab, a 400,000 square foot national distribution centre and a sourcing team based in China. All of that was in place at the beginning of covid. It had PPE of the required standard manufactured and ready to go. It contacted the Government, and what was the reply? It was ignored. Its offers went unanswered.

PPE Medpro was not even a company until May 2020, yet it was awarded a £120 million contract to provide 25 million gowns and a £81 million contract to provide face masks. PestFix was a pest control company with net assets of £18,000 in 2019. Its director, Joe England, met the chief commercial officer of the Department of Health and Social Care, Steve Oldfield, at the 80th birthday party of Mr Oldfield’s father-in-law. PestFix was referred to the high-priority lane and went on to win nearly £350 million of contracts but was fined £70 million for delivering faulty masks and gowns.

There was the mobile phone case designer that recorded a £1 million loss in 2019 but was referred to the high-priority lane by a former Conservative party chairman and received a £13 million contract to provide PPE. Meller Designs was a fashion accessory company, but it was referred by the right hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove)—David Meller was a donor to his leadership campaign in 2016—and it received £170 million of contracts.

Ayanda Capital was a family investment firm specialising in currency trading, offshore property and private equity—an obvious go-to for supplying PPE. It was referred by Andrew Mills, an unpaid adviser to the Board of Trade, which is chaired by the right hon. Member for South West Norfolk (Elizabeth Truss)—I advised her that I would be mentioning her. The problem is that Ayanda Capital provided £40 million-worth of unusable face masks, yet it still posted a £25 million gross profit in 2020. The list goes on.

What do we need instead? We need a national resilience strategy. We need a procurement Bill that is not full of loopholes. We need a whole-system approach, not this mad panic and “pick your mates to make money” approach. That is why this matters, and it is why we are asking to see the documents. I hope the whole House will support this motion and ensure that the Government get the most basic responsibility of Government right, which is to keep us safe.

07/12/2022
Nia Griffith – 2022 Speech on BCB International Being Ignored for Government Contracts

The speech made by Nia Griffith, the Labour MP for Llanelli, in the House of Commons on 6 December 2022.

My hon. Friends have set out very clearly the shocking scandal of the PPE contracts. They have also mentioned people who were working hard on the frontline, putting themselves in danger to help others; and, of course, all those who lost loved ones. I will concentrate on the damage that the VIP lanes have done to loyal, reputable companies—the backbone of British business—who offered to be generous and go the extra mile to help, rather than looking for chances to rip the taxpayer off.

BCB International, a company that operates in my constituency and in Cardiff, is a long-established manufacturer and supplier of life-saving equipment, including medical equipment. Its primary customers in the UK are the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Justice and many police forces, and it exports approximately 40% of its turnover. It makes, for instance, very good fuel for camping gas stoves called FireDragon. It was registered, it was known to the MOD and the MOJ, it had a good reputation, and it was ready to go. In March 2020, it was engaged in the production of its high-quality hand sanitiser, Dr Browne’s, in Llanelli. It employed up to 100 staff, and worked 24/7. The 80% alcohol sanitiser passed all the appropriate tests, and was well liked and used by the NHS in Wales, as well as by a number of police forces and other public bodies.

Owing to the PPE shortages, the UK Government made a commitment early in the pandemic to “back British business”, and their “UK Make” programme, headed by Lord Deighton, was tasked to unleash the potential of UK industry to scale up domestic PPE manufacturing. In May 2020, Lord Deighton said:

“As countries around the world face unprecedented demand for PPE, British industry is stepping forward to make sure vital pieces of equipment reach our workers on the frontline.

My role is to increase our homegrown PPE supplies, both now and in the future, by investing in the potential of UK manufacturing.”

However, I understand that the “UK Make” policy was withdrawn in September 2020.

In May 2020, following the Government initiatives, BCB invested £700,000 in new hand sanitiser production equipment. It also bought in high-quality FFP3 face masks from Europe, set up gown production, and made oxygen bottle bags. It supplied all those, successfully and on time, to the Welsh NHS, to Welsh and English police forces and to the MOD.

From March 2020, the company regularly tried to sell its British PPE products to the Department of Health and Social Care, and it has provided a brief overview of just some of the names that it was in contact with. I do not have time to read them out now, but the company tells me that although it made these contacts and sent many other emails, it was never contacted back. That is an utter disgrace, and today we have seen why that was the case. There was no need for it to be the case. Good, loyal companies that did everything they possibly could and turned their workforces to working for the country were completely ignored.

As has been mentioned, it was not like that in Wales, and companies have spoken very highly of the Welsh procurement procedure. It is no wonder that the Auditor General for Wales has said:

“In contrast the position described by the NAO in England, we saw no evidence of a priority being given to potential suppliers depending on who referred them.”

Those are extremely strong words, from an auditor referring to what was happening in England. The Welsh Government put in place good arrangements overall. That is such a contrast, and this is what is so damaging to all the good businesses in this country who want to play by the rules.

07/12/2022
Naz Shah – 2022 Speech on PPE Medpro and Michelle Mone

The speech made by Naz Shah, the Labour MP for Bradford West, in the House of Commons on 6 December 2022.

As an Opposition, we expect to scrutinise the Government, hold them to account and challenge them on policy and legislation, but never did I imagine that there would be scandals, favours and dodgy deals through a VIP lane. The contract that we are focusing on is the £200 million deal to provide PPE to the Government at the height of the first covid-19 lockdown, awarded to a company allegedly linked to and lobbied for by a Tory peer, who also happened to benefit to the tune of about £29 million transferred to an offshore account linked to her and her adult children.

The seriousness of the case is such that, earlier this year, the police raided two London properties linked to the Tory peer as well as four properties on the Isle of Man in support of an ongoing National Crime Agency fraud investigation. We are literally speaking about a criminal fraud investigation whose trail leads directly back to the centre of Government.

The Government line has consistently been that they were doing their best to ensure that the best quality PPE could be secured and used during the covid-19 pandemic. The truth is that they were ripping off the British taxpayer to help their friends’ pockets. In May 2020, Baroness Mone referred PPE Medpro to the Cabinet Office for potential multimillion-pound PPE contracts five days before it was even registered as a company. What track record can a company have to deliver millions of pounds of PPE for the Government when it does not even exist?

In significant contrast, like many businesses across the country, is Multibrands International Ltd, a Bradford-based business in my constituency that provided PPE and was incorporated in 1998. It has had an operation in China since 2006 and a support office in India since 2010. This legitimate and established company was denied the opportunity to provide the Government with PPE. At the time, Multibrands International wrote to me and asked the question:

“What does our Government do for businesses like us? Is it because we are Northern? Or because we choose to operate legitimately? Or is it because we don’t have secret dealings with MPs? We were never given a chance.”

Shamefully, that is the truth: it was never given a chance. Unlike the then Health Secretary’s local mate from the pub, it did not have his WhatsApp number, any other Tory Minister’s private numbers or direct access email to a Tory Minister. Instead, rip-off contracts were given to Tory friends to profit from the British taxpayer.

In my neck of the woods, the idea of mates’ rates is when you generally get a better deal. Usually, it goes something like this. “Well, I’d normally charge you a fiver but because it’s you and you’re a mate, I’ll knock off a few pennies.” In this case, according to documents leaked to The Times, during the pandemic PPE Medpro supplied masks at a cost of 38.5 pence each to the Government. The same masks from the same company at the same time were provided to other suppliers for as little as 14.5 pence. No one rips off their friends, but it was okay for the Tories and their cronies to rip off the British taxpayer. Some £8.7 billion was written off, including £4 billion spent on PPE that did not meet NHS standards.

The National Audit Office revealed that the Department for Health and Social Care paid £436 million in penalties because it had to store PPE. That is more than a year’s budget for my whole local council in Bradford for 2021-22. With the £8.7 billion that was written off, we could have had three hospitals in Bradford—I see the Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Care, the hon. Member for Colchester (Will Quince) is in his place—including the first carbon-neutral hospital and a state of the art hospital in Bradford city centre, replacing two in my constituency.

The British people will not forgive the Government for ripping them off while they suffer through a winter where they choose between eating and heating. Publish your documents and come clean. As the deputy leader of the Labour party, my right hon. Friend the Member for Ashton-under-Lyne (Angela Rayner) said when she opened the debate, stop the cover-up and start the clean-up.

07/12/2022