The Department of Health and Social Care’s handling of a £122 million PPE contract came under increasing scrutiny last week as three days of testimony in the High Court laid bare a string of apparent failings in oversight, documentation, and witness evidence.
As PPE Medpro’s legal team continued its cross-examination of departmental witnesses, questions mounted over missing audit trails, contradictory statements, and key figures absent from the witness box.
Day three began with the cross-examination of Nick Graham, a member of the PPE Cell’s Closing Team who completed the official order form for the gown contract with PPE Medpro. At the centre of questioning was why the box for CE certification — a crucial regulatory marker — had been left unticked.
Graham claimed that internal guidance instructed team members not to tick further boxes if one certification had already been included, but he was unable to provide the document in question. This “guidance” has yet to be disclosed to the court.
PPE Medpro maintains that the blank CE box is significant — evidence, they argue, that CE certification with a Notified Body (NB) number was not a requirement under their contract. Graham, under pressure, conceded that the decision to leave the field blank was intentional and followed internal team instruction.
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