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Covid-19: Award of Contracts
05 January 2022
Lead MP
Neale Hanvey
Debate Type
Adjournment Debate
Tags
EconomyStandards & Ethics
Other Contributors: 1
At a Glance
Neale Hanvey raised concerns about covid-19: award of contracts in the House of Commons. A government minister responded. Other MPs also contributed.
How the Debate Unfolded
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said:
Lead Contributor
Opened the debate
The debate focuses on the UK Government's handling of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), domestic testing capacity, and vaccine procurement during the pandemic. Neale Hanvey criticised the government for alleged corruption in PPE contracts, abandonment of home-grown testing solutions like Operation Moonshot, and cancellation of a contract with Valneva for their vaccine development, which he views as undermining local industry and public health resilience.
Michael Ellis
Cons
Acknowledges the unprecedented challenges posed by the pandemic but highlights successes such as the UK's leading position in vaccine roll-out. Defends government actions on PPE procurement, stating over 16 billion items of PPE have been secured and a safety stockpile is maintained.
Government Response
I am grateful to the Minister for giving way again—he has been a great sport. I have one short question about the volume of testing devices. Does he have any indication of what percentage of the test devices that he has touted as the greatest number in the world were manufactured here in the UK by domestic diagnostic companies?
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Assessment & feedback
Summary accuracy
About House of Commons Debates
House of Commons debates take place in the main chamber of the House of Commons. These debates cover a wide range of topics including government policy, legislation, and current affairs. MPs from all parties can participate, question ministers, and hold the government accountable for its decisions.