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Boris Johnson showed no remorse today for handing over billions in ‘buddy’ coronavirus contracts, and he refused to even promise to stop.
The prime minister insisted he was “very proud” of his record after a damning report found that £ 10.5 billion was awarded in non-competitive contracts.
The National Audit Office revealed that officials established a “high priority lane” to deal with PPE leads from people, including MPs, ministers and peers.
Applications in the high priority lane were 10 times more likely to become government contracts.
Keir Starmer, who attacked PMQs, said that “politically connected vendors” were more likely to win lucrative deals.
The Labor leader added: “We have been in this crisis for eight months and the government continues to make the same mistakes.
“Can the prime minister give a cast iron guarantee that from now on all government contracts will be subject to a proper process with full transparency and accountability?”
However, the Conservative leader, who was participating in the first virtual PMQs due to his own isolation, refused to make such a promise.
He said: “All government contracts, of course, will be published in the proper way, they are already being published.”
Publishing a contract is not the same as delivering it with the appropriate competition.
Even the prime minister’s basic claim is not true. The NAO said: “Many of the contracts awarded during this period have not been published in a timely manner.”
Sir Keir also raised the separate case of £ 21 million given to “an intermediary” to establish contracts between the government and PPE suppliers.
Spanish businessman Gabriel González Andersson received the money for “procurement, logistics, due diligence, product sourcing and quality control” when the UK government bought £ 197 million worth of PPE from a US company.
“A few weeks ago he couldn’t find that much money for free school meals for children during the middle of the term,” Sir Keir told the prime minister.
“Does the Prime Minister think that £ 21 million for a broker is an acceptable use of taxpayers’ money?”
The GMB union has criticized the contracts outlined in the National Audit Office report, saying they show “conservative cronyism is alive and well.”
(Image: Facebook)
But the prime minister insisted he had to “remove the blockades” and “change heaven and earth” to get PPE despite global shortages.
“I am very proud of what has been achieved,” he added.
Johnson said: “It is completely typical of Captain Hindsight that he now attacks our efforts to secure the PPE.
“He said we weren’t going fast enough then, but now he says we were going too fast.”
Sir Keir responded by suggesting that the Prime Minister was the captain “catch up”, delayed weeks after he called for a breaker lockout.
In a wide-ranging PMQ, Boris Johnson did not rule out cuts to the UK aid budget amid reports that it could go from 0.7% of GDP to 0.5%.
He also insisted that Covid’s support package for workers was “outstanding and exceptional”, despite the fact that 3 million were excluded and MPs hearing a £ 500 test and trace support payment are hardly used.
Meanwhile, the prime minister was forced to defend his remarks this week to MPs, calling the return of Scotland a “disaster”.
Johnson replied: “I think that what has certainly been a disaster is the way the Scottish National Party has taken and used devolution as a means of not improving the lives of its constituents, not addressing their health problems, not improving education in Scotland, but constantly, and I know this is actually a point of view that (Sir Keir Starmer) shares, but constantly campaigning for the disintegration of our country.
“Turning decentralization, which would otherwise be a solid policy that I personally benefited from when I was running London, but turning decentralization into a mission to divide the UK.
“That, in my opinion, would be a disaster.”
But Sir Keir replied: “The biggest threat to the future of the UK is the Prime Minister every time he opens his mouth.”
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