A petition calling for Michelle Mone to be expelled from the House of Lords has generated more than 125,000 signatures, after the baroness was linked to a PPE scandal.
It's alleged the Conservative peer benefited to the tune of £29m from a company called PPE Medpro, which received over £200m in total via government contracts during the pandemic.
Mone has denied any involvement with the company, which she had recommended for the supply of gowns to the NHS, but leaked documents appear to show husband Doug Barrowman was paid at least £65m by the company and then distributed the funds through a series of offshore accounts, trusts and companies.
It's alleged Mone and her children were beneficiaries of one such offshore trust, which was paid £29m.
A petition started by campaign group 38 Degrees and addressed to the House of Lords conduct committee is calling for Baroness Mone to be expelled.
It also demands that the body "ensure that every penny in profit that she took from the taxpayer is repaid immediately".
Jonathan Harty, Campaigns Manager at 38 Degrees, said: “It’s less than a week since the light on the paper trail reportedly linking Baroness Mone to this scandal was revealed, and already more than 124,000 members of the public have called for her to be expelled from the Lords.
“While our heroic NHS workers were putting their lives on the line during the pandemic, the idea a Conservative peer could be feathering her own nest on the backs of a contract that failed to deliver the vital PPE our essential workers needed, is sickening.
“In the face of reports that millions may have been pocketed by people looking to make a profit out of the pandemic, the message from the public couldn’t be clearer: corruption has no place in politics. If Baroness Mone used her position to make millions of pounds for herself, she should not only lose her seat in the Lords, she should have to pay back every penny.
“Michelle Mone still sits as a Conservative Peer. The pressure on the Lords Committee, and on Government ministers is mounting by the minute.”
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