Wednesday, July 20, 2022
The ongoing cost of government failure during the pandemic
The Mirror reports that MPs have been warned that unresolved disputes between the Government and suppliers of poor-quality PPE could cost the taxpayer £2.7 billion.
The paper says that tDepartment of Health's "significant failings" in handling PPE contracts during the pandemic have also led to a surplus of four billion unneeded items, some of which will be burned:
A new report by the Public Accounts Committee, which scrutinises Government spending, criticised the department for taking little action against potentially fraudulent suppliers.
This was despite an estimated 5% of PPE expenditure involving fraud.
The MPs claimed the DHSC was paralysed from acting against suppliers "who may have made excessive profits" while providing substandard equipment because it failed to carry out sufficient checks before agreeing some contracts.
Progress on resolving disputes on 176 contracts worth up to £2.7 billion is slow, with no cases being moved into the litigation stage of the commercial dispute process.
PAC chairwoman Dame Meg Hillier said: "The departure from normal approaches to due diligence, record keeping, decision making and accountability in relation to PPE contracts puts a stain on the UK's response to the pandemic.
"Even if you accept that some proper procedure will have to slip in times of crisis, the complete collapse of some of the most well-established civil service practices beggars belief. The taxpayer will be paying for these decisions for years to come."
The MPs previously said the Department lost 75% of the £12 billion it spent on PPE in the first year of the coronavirus pandemic to "obscenely inflated prices" and faulty kit.
Who says there is no magic money tree?
The paper says that tDepartment of Health's "significant failings" in handling PPE contracts during the pandemic have also led to a surplus of four billion unneeded items, some of which will be burned:
A new report by the Public Accounts Committee, which scrutinises Government spending, criticised the department for taking little action against potentially fraudulent suppliers.
This was despite an estimated 5% of PPE expenditure involving fraud.
The MPs claimed the DHSC was paralysed from acting against suppliers "who may have made excessive profits" while providing substandard equipment because it failed to carry out sufficient checks before agreeing some contracts.
Progress on resolving disputes on 176 contracts worth up to £2.7 billion is slow, with no cases being moved into the litigation stage of the commercial dispute process.
PAC chairwoman Dame Meg Hillier said: "The departure from normal approaches to due diligence, record keeping, decision making and accountability in relation to PPE contracts puts a stain on the UK's response to the pandemic.
"Even if you accept that some proper procedure will have to slip in times of crisis, the complete collapse of some of the most well-established civil service practices beggars belief. The taxpayer will be paying for these decisions for years to come."
The MPs previously said the Department lost 75% of the £12 billion it spent on PPE in the first year of the coronavirus pandemic to "obscenely inflated prices" and faulty kit.
Who says there is no magic money tree?
