The UK’s largest supplier of unused Covid personal protective equipment (PPE) reported that its products may have deteriorated after being left in shipping containers for several months post-delivery.
An investigation by the BBC uncovered that approximately £1.4bn worth of aprons, masks, and goggles, which were initially compliant and in good condition, have been incinerated, recycled, or marked for disposal.
This wastage is tied to a £1.8bn agreement between Full Support Healthcare and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), making it one of the most extravagant mishandlings during the pandemic.
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The DHSC, responsible for procuring and distributing PPE, contested the £1.4bn figure, asserting that some costs were offset by recycling efforts.
Full Support Healthcare, a Wellingborough-based company founded by Sarah Stoute, swiftly mobilized PPE supplies from China in early 2020 to meet the surging demand from hospitals, securing orders amounting to 13% of DHSC’s total Covid PPE expenditure.
However, Freedom of Information Act data from the government’s procurement partner, Supply Chain Co-ordination Ltd (SCCL), revealed that 85% of the two billion items supplied by Full Support Healthcare will never be used in care settings and will be disposed of, potentially as energy waste.
Mrs. Stoute, through her legal team, disclosed that the shipping containers carrying the PPE were unloaded sporadically, sometimes up to 207 days after arrival. She emphasized that the masks were perishable and needed to be kept cool and dry, not stored in containers for extended periods. She maintained that the orders met all requirements and blamed SCCL for lacking adequate storage space during the pandemic.
By November 2020, the Port of Felixstowe was overwhelmed with thousands of containers of PPE, which were eventually relocated to various sites around Suffolk. The exact location of Full Support Healthcare’s PPE remains unclear, but the additional storage costs to taxpayers have exceeded £100m.
SCCL data indicated that 825 million items deemed “excess to forecast requirements” are still held, with disposal or recycling as possible outcomes. An SCCL spokesperson reiterated that the DHSC was in charge of PPE procurement and logistics management during the pandemic.
Health Secretary Victoria Atkins disputed the BBC’s findings on the wasted stock but did not elaborate. She defended the PPE procurement efforts, stating it was crucial to secure the necessary equipment for frontline workers in both healthcare and social care during the crisis.
Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting criticized the handling of the deal as “staggering incompetence,” while the Liberal Democrats demanded transparency regarding the costs of these failures. Peter Upcott, from PPE Specialist, noted that the volume of PPE should have been anticipated, and the government, along with SCCL, should have devised a detailed storage plan.
In July of the previous year, an illegal dump of medical aprons supplied by Full Support Healthcare was discovered in the New Forest. Documents revealed that the DHSC had auctioned off the 1,550-pallet stockpile to a private company, and the Environment Agency had to enforce its clearance due to fire risks.
Full Support was not responsible for this stockpile, and the Stoutes were unaware of the unused stock volume until informed by the BBC.
A DHSC spokesperson acknowledged that PPE was secured during an intense global competition where demand far exceeded supply. They noted that nearly half of the remaining stock was sold, recycled, or donated, and unused items would be converted into energy from waste to recoup further costs.
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