Government fraud authorities are looking into contracts to provide billions of pounds worth of PPE during the Covid-19 pandemic, officials have said.
Jonathan Marron, director general for the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities within the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) told the Commons Public Accounts Committee that there were “concerns” over 176 contracts. These range from the quality of the equipment provided to the performance of the contractor, the committee was told.
“We are working really, really closely with our internal fraud teams and the broader fraud authorities. That is part of what we are looking at, as to how we might bring resolution to these disputes. All options are on the table,” Mr Marron said. The amount of equipment at issue is worth £2.7 billion, as part of contracts worth £3.9 billion.
