Practically £10 billion-worth of non-public protecting tools (PPE) purchased by the NHS in the course of the pandemic has been written off by the federal government.
The staggering sum was revealed within the Division of Well being and Social Care’s annual report.
Labour has accused Rishi Sunak, who was chancellor on the time, of “throwing away taxpayers’ cash as if it had been confetti”
In line with the annual report, the federal government spent £13.6bn on PPE.
Since then “the division has written down the worth of its PPE stock by £9.9 billion as a result of it was unusable or its market value had fallen because it was bought in the course of the pandemic.”
Shadow well being secretary Wes Streeting stated: “As chancellor, Rishi Sunak threw away taxpayers’ cash as if it had been confetti and has didn’t get our a refund. Sunak’s carelessness has price our nation pricey.
“By no means once more can the Conservatives declare to be the cautious stewards of the general public funds.”
He stated Labour would appoint a “Covid corruption commissioner” if it wins the election “to chase down those that ripped off the British taxpayer”.
Lib Dem well being spokesperson Daisy Cooper stated: “This can be a sickening degree of waste. Billions of kilos of taxpayers’ cash has been poured down the drain due to this Conservative authorities’s incompetence.
“To rub salt within the wound, a few of this cash was wasted on dodgy contracts with Conservative cronies, the overwhelming majority of which has nonetheless not been recovered.
“The well being secretary ought to come to parliament and clarify how a lot taxpayers’ cash was frittered away and what’s being accomplished to get it again.”
