SNP MP Owen Thompson will today present a bill that, if passed, would help tackle the “rampant Tory cronyism” at the heart of the UK Government.
The Ministerial Interests (Emergency Powers) Bill would force UK ministers to answer questions about any personal, political or financial connections they may have to a company that is awarded a government contract.
The bill follows a series of revelations that the UK Government has awarded billions of taxpayers’ money to companies linked to the Conservative Party during the coronavirus pandemic – including a National Audit Office report revealing a lack of transparency and adequate documentation of UK Government procurement decisions during the pandemic. It also revealed a high priority VIP lane was set up to allow suppliers with links to politicians or senior officials to pitch directly for work.
Information submitted to the Public Accounts Committee by Transparency International UK states 68 contracts, worth over £3 billion, merit further investigation, while 66% of Covid-19-related contracts awarded between February 1 and November 1 last year worth £8.4bn were not disclosed within the legal timeframe.
In 17 of the contracts awarded by the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), worth £971 million, relate to companies with political connections.
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