The official inquiry into the UK's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has found that almost £10 billion of taxpayers' money was wasted in the scramble to buy personal protective equipment (PPE). In her fifth report, Baroness Heather Hallett criticised the 'vast' waste, which amounted to £9.9 billion – two-thirds of the £14.9 billion spent by the UK and devolved governments on PPE.
VIP Lane Criticised as 'Misguided' and 'Unfair'
Baroness Hallett also condemned the controversial 'VIP lane', which prioritised offers of PPE from individuals with political connections. She described it as a 'misguided' and 'unfair' process that undermined public confidence in procurement. However, she stated there was 'no evidence of cronyism or corruption' by ministers or officials when awarding contracts.
Lady Hallett said: 'The waste of taxpayers' money was vast. The public must be able to trust that their money is being spent with propriety, fairness and transparency. Public confidence – so important in an emergency – was undermined by failures in procurement.'
UK Underprepared for Pandemic
The report found that the UK was underprepared for the pandemic, with existing stockpiles of PPE 'in a perilous state'. Large quantities of equipment had expired. Only a third of the masks in England's pre-pandemic stockpile were usable, while Scotland had no supplies of the top-level FFP3 masks needed by healthcare professionals.
The procurement system was working under 'immense pressure', with no effective system for triaging offers. After then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson and then-Health Secretary Matt Hancock issued a 'call to arms' for PPE in April 2020, the system was 'deluged' with offers. Officials told the inquiry that the call to arms 'made matters worse', with the system receiving 25,000 offers over 15 weeks, including 300 offers a day at some points.
VIP Lane Contracts More Expensive and Problematic
Against this background, officials established a 'high priority' or 'VIP' lane that prioritised offers referred by politicians, healthcare leaders and others. Lady Hallett described it as 'a misguided attempt at prioritisation that embedded unfairness in emergency procurement'. Offers from politically-connected individuals were more likely to receive a contract than others.
The report found that contracts awarded through the VIP lane were 'more expensive' and had more 'contract performance issues' than those awarded through the normal route. Of the 32 people who referred successful offers to the VIP lane, 15 had a connection with the Conservative Party, and none came from any other party, although politicians from other parties were referred to it.
Lady Hallett said her inquiry had found 'no evidence of cronyism or corruption on the part of ministers or officials in the final decision of whether to award or reject a contract', but noted the system was 'inherently biased towards those with connections to the UK government'. She said: 'This heightened the risk of abuse. It damaged the reputation of those involved in procurement during the pandemic and undermined public trust in the UK government’s emergency procurement system, in the UK government itself and in its response to the pandemic. The High Priority Lane should not be repeated.'
Reaction and Ongoing Investigations
Nicola Brook, a solicitor at law firm Broudie Jackson Canter, which represents the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK campaign group, attacked the inquiry's findings. She said: 'Today’s report reveals the shocking level of corruption and cronyism at the heart of government, resulting in billions of pounds lost as companies sought to profit while thousands died. What is equally shocking is the chair’s failure to call this corruption out after she inexplicably failed to call crucial witnesses involved in some of the most scandalous contracts.'
Tuesday's report did not include Lady Hallett's findings on PPE Medpro, the firm linked to Conservative peer Baroness Michelle Mone and her husband Doug Barrowman, due to an ongoing National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation. The High Court ordered Medpro to repay £148 million to the government last year after finding it had breached a contract to supply surgical gowns. Both Lady Mone and Mr Barrowman deny wrongdoing. The inquiry has said it will release its findings on Medpro once any criminal proceedings have concluded.
Discussing fraud more widely, the inquiry found that the pace of procurement reduced the time available for due diligence – in some cases to just four hours – increasing the risk of fraud. The UK government estimated £256 million was lost to fraud relating to PPE procurement. However, the inquiry found that the investigation into PPE Medpro is the only criminal process relating to alleged PPE procurement fraud in the whole of the UK. The NCA probe into Medpro remains ongoing, and in June 2024, the agency said an unnamed 46-year-old man from Barnet, north London, had been arrested as part of the investigation. No criminal charges have been brought.
Positive Aspects of the Response
In her statement, Lady Hallett also mentioned some 'positives' from the pandemic response, saying businesses and the public 'rallied enthusiastically to help' and praising the Army's help in organising 'an extraordinary logistical operation'. She added: 'Although the lack of planning caused an unnecessary delay in procuring the PPE and other equipment that healthcare workers and others desperately needed, it was a positive feature of the subsequent procurement response that key healthcare equipment was obtained at the speed and scale the crisis demanded.'
