"The investigation, by the Lords standards commissioner Martin Jelley, followed a complaint that Lord Chadlington had referred a supplier, SG Recruitment Ltd (SGRL), to the government's 'High Priority Lane' for PPE contracts in 2020. This route was used by the government during the Covid crisis to directly award contracts to companies offering to supply personal protective equipment, which would usually be opened to competing bids."
"SGRL, which was awarded contracts to provide PPE during the Covid crisis, was a subsidiary of a holding company, Sumner Group Holdings Ltd (SGHL), of which Lord Chadlington was a shareholder and non-executive director. The commissioner's latest inquiry followed two previous investigations by his predecessor, in 2022 and 2023, that found the Tory peer's actions had not breached the Lords code of conduct."
"The commissioner launched a third probe after concluding that evidence submitted by Lord Chadlington to the Covid inquiry presented 'fresh evidence' of his contact with ministers and advisers during the pandemic. In a report published on Friday, the commissioner found the Tory peer had committed three breaches of a Lords rule banning peers from providing 'parliamentary services in return for pay.'"
Lord Chadlington, a Conservative peer and former adviser to John Major, is leaving the House of Lords following a recommendation for a one-year suspension. An investigation by Lords standards commissioner Martin Jelley determined he breached the Lords code of conduct by referring SG Recruitment Ltd (SGRL) to the government's High Priority Lane for PPE contracts in 2020. SGRL was a subsidiary of Sumner Group Holdings Ltd, where Chadlington served as shareholder and non-executive director. Although two previous investigations cleared him, a third probe was opened after fresh evidence emerged from his Covid inquiry testimony regarding his contact with ministers and advisers. Chadlington rejected the findings, claiming any errors were honest mistakes.
#parliamentary-conduct-breach #ppe-contracts-pandemic #house-of-lords-suspension #government-procurement-scandal
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