Prisoners are reportedly being paid £3.50 a day by the federal government to secretly dismantle surplus PPE that was wanted through the pandemic and unused Covid checks.
Lags are being paid to take away supplies that may be recycled from packs of face masks and different gear together with full-body hazmat fits after which dump all the pieces which can’t.
And reportedly, as much as seven million Covid testing kits are being thrown out and a few reportedly might have nonetheless been useable as they haven’t handed their expiry date.
It has been calculated that utilizing right now’s manufacturing prices, the massive quantity of PPE and checks may very well be price as much as £12million.
Lorries have transported PPE and Covid checks from Felixstowe, Suffolk, the place unused PPE has reportedly been saved in delivery containers (file picture of delivery containers)
Prisoners are reportedly being paid £3.50 a day by the federal government to secretly dismantle surplus PPE
Daisy Cooper, Liberal Democrat MP for St Albans {accused} the federal government of ‘utilizing prisoners to cowl their tracks’ for losing enormous quantities of cash on unusable PPE, the Mirror reported.
The large quantity of PPE was amassed after the beginning of the outbreak noticed docs and carers left with out sufficient of the very important protecting gear at the start of the pandemic.
A few of the PPE that’s being destroyed was supposed to be used by prisoners.
However as a substitute as much as 180 prisoners are spending their time destroying the medical gear – as three prisons have three workshops, every manned by as much as 20 prisoners.
The scheme has reportedly been occurring for six months.
‘It is smart as doing it in jail means the general public do not know it is happening,’ an insider informed the Mirror.
The federal government mentioned the checks had been outdated however reportedly an insider mentioned checks marked for the Division for Well being and Social Care had an expiry of December subsequent 12 months.
Lorries transported the equipment from Felixstowe, Suffolk, the place unused PPE has reportedly been saved in delivery containers.
One of many prisons which has acquired a cargo is class C Ranby jail (pictured) which is in Retford, Nottinghamshire
One of many prisons which has acquired a cargo is class C Ranby jail which is in Retford, Nottinghamshire.
The Lib Dem MP mentioned that the ministers ‘should come clear’ about how a lot unused PPE is being destroyed in prisons and the way a lot is was costing – including that thousands and thousands had been ‘wasted on defective PPE and crony Covid contracts’.
The Jail Service informed the Mirror: ‘This mission ensures waste is recycled and saves taxpayer cash.’
In June it was revealed that round £9billion had been spent by the federal government on PPE that was faulty, out-of-date or in any other case unusable.
A Justice Division supply informed the paper: ‘Masks and different PPE being destroyed had been made for prisoners throughout England and Wales and provided by the Authorities.
‘The checks got here straight from the UK Well being Safety Company.’
