Mhairi Black blasts Michelle Mone and warns Tories 'should not be let off the hook'

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Mhairi Black has warned the Conservatives "should not be let off the hook" over a PPE scandal after the party claimed Michelle Mone was no longer a member.The SNP Deputy Westminster leader said the Tories "shouldn't be allowed to dodge responsibility" for their part in the row, which centres on a £202m deal awarded to a consortium led by Mone's husband at the height of the covid pandemic.

The Record revealed on Monday that Mone is no longer a Conservative member. She lost the party whip in the House of Lords and took a leave of absence last year over claims she and her children benefited from huge profits made by PPE Medpro, which was set-up her husband Doug Barrowman.Mone was made a Conservative peer in 2015 by then prime minister David Cameron.

The revelation came after she admitted lying to the public about her involvement in PPE Medpro, which was handed a UK Government contract of £200m to supply equipment in the early days of the pandemic.

Mone also admitted that she could benefit from the contract on BBC's Laura Kuenssberg show on Sunday.The firm is currently being investigated by the National Crime Agency and is being sued by the UK Government.Black said the Tories must "take full responsibility" for the scandal.She said: “Neither Baroness Mone or the Tories should be let off the hook simply because she’s no longer a Conservative party member - this scandal runs deep and where any wrongdoing has occurred there must be consequences.“The Tories will try to cynically hide behind her removal from the party, but they shouldn't be allowed to dodge responsibility for the part they’ve played in this.“Mone was a Conservative member, Conservative peer, and benefited in millions of pounds from this unscrupulous Conservative