Good morning. Yesterday was already looking difficult for the Conservative peer Michelle Mone. In the morning, she announced that she will take a “leave of absence” from the House of Lords to address allegations about her involvement in PPE Medpro, a medical supply business that she appears to have lobbied ministers to use, and from the profits of which she appears to have received millions. Meanwhile, the government decided not to oppose a Labour motion seeking to force the release of documents relating to a £200m government contract awarded to the company.
But last night, new disclosures raised the pressure on Lady Mone again: a Guardian exclusive – which leads today’s paper – revealing that a second company she advocated for in an attempt to secure Covid contracts, LFI Diagnostics, was a secret entity of her husband Douglas Barrowman’s family office.
