The Covid inquiry revealed on July 14, 2026, that inadequate personal protective equipment (PPE) left NHS staff and patients vulnerable during the pandemic, resulting in nearly £10bn of taxpayers' money being wasted. The chair of the inquiry, Baroness Hallett, criticized the government for the significant waste in procurement, which amounted to £9.9bn—two-thirds of the total £14.9bn spent on PPE.
The inquiry highlighted that the UK entered the pandemic with a dangerously insufficient stockpile of masks, gowns, and gloves, making it ill-prepared for the global scramble for supplies. Baroness Hallett described the controversial VIP lane—a system that prioritized PPE offers from politically connected individuals—as a flawed approach that should never be repeated. However, she noted there was “no evidence of cronyism or corruption” in the awarding of contracts.
Government Spending on PPE and Equipment
Between January 2020 and June 2022, the UK government spent over £42bn on PPE, home testing kits, and other medical equipment. The inquiry found that a significant amount of this expenditure was wasted:
- £9.9bn worth of PPE was written off as unused or out of date.
- £157m was lost on unused healthcare equipment.
- £143m was charged for ventilator designs that never reached production.
- In Scotland, approximately £8m of healthcare equipment, including PPE and testing kits, was written off.
- Wales spent £18m on unused PPE.
- Northern Ireland faced a loss of £43m on masks, gowns, and gloves at risk of expiry.
The inquiry concluded that while having a surplus of PPE in a pandemic is better than being underprepared, more accurate calibration of supply and demand would have led to more efficient procurement.
