A senior Conservative MP has been urged to stand down as chair of parliament’s health select committee after a leak of text messages exchanged with Matt Hancock sparked questions about whether he broke lobbying rules.
According to the leaked messages from 2021, Steve Brine, a former health minister, said had been “trying for months” during the Covid pandemic to liaise with the NHS to hire anaesthetists through a recruitment company he worked for.
He earned £1,600 a month for eight hours’ work from the company Remedium between July 2020 and the end of December 2021. Previously, he served as a health minister until March 2019.
MPs are banned from lobbying the government on behalf of an organisation they have received a “reward” from for six months after any payment.
In a letter, the lobbying watchdog the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba) told Brine he should “not become personally involved in lobbying the UK government/NHS organisations on behalf of Remedium Partners” or “make use, directly or indirectly, of his government and/or Whitehall contacts to influence policy or secure business on behalf of Remedium Partners”.
However, a new tranche of leaked WhatsApp messages show Brine said he had been “trying for months” to talk to the NHS to hire anaesthetists through Remedium.
The message was received by Michael Gove, and forwarded to Hancock on 2 February 2021, during the third national lockdown.
In it, Brine said Remedium had “50 anaesthetists right now who can be in the country and on the ground in the NHS if someone only said let’s help us”. He added: “They just want to assist and asked me how they might.”
Brine said he had offered this “to health” – thought to be a reference to Hancock’s department – and Simon Stevens, the head of NHS England.
Brine added that he wanted to help as senior members of the government had talked about an issue recruiting anaesthetists, and asked Gove: “How might I progress this or does the NHS just not need the help?” Hancock replied a few minutes later: “This is already in hand.”
A separate message from Hancock’s special adviser said Brine was being a “nob” and that they had been “chasing my tail trying to sort loads of stuff for him”.
On 3 February, the adviser said contact had been made with Remedium before a follow-up on 6 February that said Brine had “mentioned the Remedium issue” again.
Anneliese Dodds, the chair of the Labour party, said: “If Steve Brine has broken lobbying rules he must face the consequences. Rishi Sunak has been too weak to stand up to his party or his cabinet. Will he take the appropriate action in this case?”
The Liberal Democrats called on Brine to step down from his influential role as chair of the Commons health select committee.
Daisy Cooper, the party’s health spokesperson, said he should relinquish the role immediately “to allow an independent investigation to take place”.
She added: “These messages suggest Steve Brine was desperate to help his corporate employers whilst the country was pulling together during a pandemic, and leaves him with serious questions to answer.
“Frankly, the whole thing stinks. Rishi Sunak should launch an independent investigation into this damning evidence immediately.”
Brine was contacted for comment.
In a statement to the Telegraph, he said: “This was about responding in the national interest to an urgent public call from ministers and the NHS in a national crisis even if, ultimately, it led nowhere, let alone secure any business for Remedium.”
