Covid: Hertfordshire firm sues as £45m NHS masks deal collapses
- Published
The respirator masks were due to arrive in the UK by June, but Purple Surgical could not supply them
Five million medical masks bought by the government for £45m are missing amid claims of fraud.
The government agreed a contract with supplier Purple Surgical in April.
The respirator masks were due to arrive in the UK by June, but the company could not supply them.
Hertfordshire-based Purple Surgical has filed papers alleging fraud by its supplier Win Billion Investment Group, a firm in the British Virgin Islands, as first reported in the Guardian, external.
Its chief executive Robert Sharpe has confirmed to the BBC that the company intends to fulfil the order - but if that is not possible, the full value of the contract will be repaid.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care, external said it could not comment on individual allegations of fraud, but all allegations are taken seriously.
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