Michelle Mone lashes out at Rishi Sunak in furious bust-up over PPE scandal and says ‘they all knew my involvement’
BRA tycoon Michelle Mone lashed out at Rishi Sunak today in a furious swipe over her PPE scandal.
The 52-year-old blasted "they all knew my involvement" as she hit back at the Prime Minister for saying he takes the scandal surrounding her PPE deal “incredibly seriously”.
Lady Mone admitted lying about the huge profits she could rake in from personal protective equipment sold to the Government during the pandemic by the company led by her husband, Doug Barrowman.
In an interview with the BBC on Sunday, the couple apologised for denying their role in the deal but insisted they have "no case to answer".
Asked about the scandal during a trip to Scotland, Rishi Sunak said: “The Government takes these things incredibly seriously, which is why we’re pursuing legal action against the company concerned in these matters.
“That’s how seriously I take it and the Government takes it."
Shortly afterwards, Lady Mone took to social media to criticise the PM's comments, firing back: "What is Rishi Sunak talking about?
"I was honest with the Cabinet Office, the Government and the NHS in my dealings with them.
"They all knew about my involvement from the very beginning."
But this was rejected by Tory former health minister Lord Bethell, who replied she “wasn’t ‘honest’ about her financial interest to me”.
“She didn’t explain ‘from the very beginning’ about her financial ‘involvement’,” he said, adding that it was not in her register of financial interests as a member of the House of Lords.
Last year, the Government issued breach of contract proceedings against PPE Medpro over the 2020 deal on the supply of sterile gowns. The firm is defending the legal action.
READ MORE ON POLITICS
The company is also being investigated by the National Crime Agency into suspected criminal offences in the procurement of PPE contracts.
Lady Mone is also now facing calls to be expelled from the House of Lords while Labour is piling pressure on the Government to “come clean” about what ministers knew after she name-checked Michael Gove in the interview.
She said she contacted the then-chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster at the start of the pandemic to offer help.
Speaking during a visit to Leeds, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said: “This is a shocking disgrace from top to bottom. And, as every day goes past, there are more questions that need to be answered.
“There’s now suggestions there was early private contact with members of the Cabinet that may have started this unhappy story in the first place. So the Government needs come clean.”
Most read in The Sun
He called on Mr Gove to make a statement in the Commons.
Asked if Lady Mone should be expelled from the Lords, Sir Keir said: “I don’t think she should be in the Lords. I think the Government should be held to account for this.”
Energy Minister Lord Callanan echoed the call, telling Sky News: "I would hope that she would not be coming back to the House of Lords.”
Lady Mone, who was appointed to the Lords by David Cameron in 2015, is currently taking a leave of absence from the House of Lords.
Peers can be expelled or suspended under specific conditions, such as conviction and imprisonment, breaking the Code of Conduct, or non-attendance for a whole parliamentary session lasting at least six months, unless they have sought and been granted a leave of absence.
It is not clear whether she still has the Conservative whip.
Last year, Downing Street said she had lost the Tory whip “by default” when she voluntarily took a leave of absence.
But a House of Lords spokesman told The Sun a "leave of absence has nothing to do with political party membership and/or the whip".
READ MORE SUN STORIES
He also confirmed the website, which describes her as a Conservative member of the House of Lords, is correct.
The Conservative Party has been asked for comment.
