Michael Gove calls for criminal case to be brought against Michelle Mone
Cabinet minister Michael Gove has been dragged into the PPE procurement scandal involving the firm recommended to top officials during the Covid pandemic by Tory peer Michelle Mone.
The housing secretary revealed on Tuesday that he has co-operated with the National Crime Agency’s investigation into PPE Medpro, which supplied faulty protective gear to the NHS after the baroness recommended it to ministers.
In an extraordinary interview with the BBC, Lady Mone has now admitted she lied when she denied having connections to the company, and that she stands to benefit from its £60m in profits which have been placed into a trust by her husband Doug Barrowman.
But she has alleged that Mr Gove and other ministers knew about her involvement with the company “from the very beginning”.
Asked about her claims on Tuesday, the senior Tory said: “There is a National Crime Agency inquiry going on. I’ve co-operated with that inquiry because I want to ensure that it reaches its conclusion quickly, that justice can be served.”
He added: “I hope that inquiry results in a case being brought as quickly as possible.”
Michelle Mone hits out at Lord Bethell’s ‘mysterious messages’
And today, she hit out at ex-health minister Lord Bethell after he accused her of being dishonest about her assertion – mocking him for “mysteriously” discovering messages from October 2020, after the Tory peer claimed to have lost many messages from that period after breaking and changing his phone.
But he fired back that her assertions were not true:
Andy Gregory19 December 2023 20:13
Watch: Lying to press over PPE contract was ‘not a crime’ says Michelle Mone
Lying to press over PPE contract was ‘not a crime’ says Michelle Mone
Andy Gregory19 December 2023 19:56
Michelle Mone accuses Michael Gove of overseeing ‘huge waste in PPE contracts’
Michelle Mone has accused Michael Gove of overseeing “huge waste in PPE contracts” as she hit out against the government on Monday.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Mr Gove said: “If there are further questions to ask about PPE procurement, and I believe the government has a strong record, then I’m more than happy to do so with the Covid inquiry.”
Andy Gregory19 December 2023 19:43
Gove rows back on claims he wants criminal case ‘brought as quickly as possible’
Michael Gove told reporters on Tuesday that he wanted to see a criminal case “being brought” against Baroness Michelle Mone “as quickly as possible”.
But the levelling up secretary’s aide later said he had “misspoke” – insisting that the minister had only meant to say that he hoped the NCA would conclude its inquiries soon.
Adam Forrest, Political Correspondent19 December 2023 19:40
Michael Gove reveals he has ‘co-operated’ with NCA probe into PPE Medpro
Cabinet minister Michael Gove has revealed that he has being cooperating with the National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation into the scandal surrounding Baroness Michelle Mone’s firm PPE Medpro.
Baroness Mone has insisted that Mr Gove and other ministers knew “all about” her involvement with a PPE firm “from the very beginning” – as she continues to lash out at Rishi Sunak’s government.
Asked about Lady Mone, Mr Gove said: “There is a National Crime Agency investigation going on. I’ve cooperated with that inquiry, because I want to ensure that it reaches its conclusion quickly, that justice can be served.”
Our political correspondent Adam Forrest has the full report on today’s developments so far:
Andy Gregory19 December 2023 19:39
Good evening, we’ll be using this blog to provide the latest updates on the PPE procurement scandal, after under-fire peer Michelle Mone accused Michael Gove of overseeing “huge waste in PPE contracts”.
Andy Gregory19 December 2023 19:37