Baroness Michelle Mone, a Scottish businesswoman and Conservative life peer, has come under fire following a controversial interview in which she admitted to having lied about her involvement in PPE contracts over the pandemic.
Mone appeared alongside her billionaire husband Doug Barrowman on BBC show Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg to defend her actions, as she admits she stands to profit £60m from PPE contracts.
GB News presenter Dawn Neesom and author and journalist Emma Woolf joined Andrew Pierce and Ellie Costello on Britain’s newsroom to discuss the controversy.
Woolf began: “She's in a very interesting position, as are her lawyers as well, isn't she?
Michelle Mone was grilled by Laura Kuenssberg over her involvement in PPE contracts
BBC / GB News
“Because it's sort of ‘I was made a scapegoat. I've never lied. I didn't pull the wool over anyone's eyes, but I did lie, actually’. She's saying 10 different things.”
“It’s OK to lie to the press…” said Andrew sarcastically.
“‘It's OK to lie to the press, but I was protecting my family, and I'm being made a scapegoat’,” continued Woolf. “I think get your story straight and then stick to it!”
The group compared the interview to Prince Andrew’s interview on BBC’s Newsnight, in which he was grilled on his associations with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
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Conservative life peer Michelle Mone (left) and Andrew Pierce (right)
PA / GB News
“At times I was just incredulous,” said Andrew. “Why are you doing this, my dear? And why are you doing this, because every time you open your mouth you are putting another nail into the coffee.”
Neesom agreed: “And Laura Kuenssberg’s face is like ‘Oh my god, this is gold!’”
Woolf came back in, saying: “But also in a more serious level, she's admitting to basically using the pandemic to get rich quick, isn't she? That's what Wes Streeting was saying, ‘you got rich quick and we want our money back!’”
“And you wouldn't mind but the flipping PPE was defective!” fumed Andrew.
Baroness Mone and Doug Barrowman, pictured in 2019Getty“All she had to do at the beginning was say, ‘Yes, we were linked to this company’,” said Neesom. “‘Because obviously we all needed PPE and we were all panicking so we we supplied the Government. We thought we were doing the right thing. It turned out to be defective. We apologise for that.’”
“And this woman is in the House of Lords!” Raged Woolf. “On a break but she's a Baroness. That's what we are honouring in our system!”
Andrew interrupted, saying: “The last time a Lord was chucked out of the House of Lords was 1918, for being unpatriotic, thinking they were too close to the German army during the First World.”
Ellie rounded off the segment, asking for viewers’ opinions on whether Baroness Mone should be ‘chucked out of the House of Lords’, to which Andrew gave a simple, and resounding, “Yes!”