£15bn Covid contracts raise 'profound' corruption concerns, campaigners say

Research of Covid-related contracts worth about £15.5bn has prompted “profound” concerns about corruption, according to campaigners.

The analysis, conducted by Transparency International UK, questioned the nature of 135 contracts made during the pandemic.

The group points to at least 28 contracts, worth £4.1bn, which went to organisations with close connections at Westminster, particularly with the then Conservative government.

It also raises concerns about 15 contracts worth £1.7bn awarded to politically connected suppliers, a system deemed unlawful by the high court.

The research flags contracts which went to “new inexperienced suppliers,” and uncompetitive processes.

It comes as the Covid-19 Inquiry is set to reconvene for its third module, examining the impact of the pandemic on the UK’s health services.

Daniel Bruce, chief executive of Transparency International UK, said: “The scale of corruption risk in the former government’s approach to spending public money during the years of the Covid pandemic was profound.

“The Covid procurement response was marked by various points of systemic weakness and political choices that allowed cronyism to thrive, all enabled by woefully inadequate public transparency.

“As far as we can ascertain, no other country used a system like the UK’s VIP lane in their Covid response.”

He urged authorities to “ensure” there is “full accountability”, as Labour ministers look to appoint a Covid corruption commissioner.

The report, titled Behind the Masks, is due to be revealed in Westminster on Monday afternoon.

It recommends that ministers investigate the highlighted concerns and strengthen procurement practices and safeguards against impropriety.

A Tory spokesman said: “Government policy was in no way influenced by the donations the party received – they are entirely separate.”

In July, Chancellor Rachel Reeves told the Commons a Covid anti-corruption probe would go ahead, aimed at claiming back money from Covid fraud.

A spokesperson for the Treasury, which is now leading efforts to investigate Covid corruption, said: “The Chancellor has been clear that she will not tolerate waste and will appoint a Covid corruption commissioner to get back the money that is owed to the British people.

“The commissioner will report directly to the Chancellor, working with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, and their report will be presented to Parliament for all Members to see.”