UK govt says 400,000 gowns from Turkey unsuitable for NHS
A shipment of 400,000 protective gowns shipped from Turkey for NHS staff to combat the coronavirus fell below UK standards, the government confirmed on Thursday.
Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis admitted the gowns were unusable for medical purposes. The personal protective equipment (PPE) was being held in a facility near Heathrow airport and the government was understood to be returning the shipment and seeking a refund.
"There was a view that it was good enough PPE. It is only when it has got here that teams have looked at it again and taken a view that it is not up to the right standard and they’ve decided not to use it," Brandon told Sky News.
"I think it is right that if we have got particular standards for what we want our frontline staff to be able to have access to we make sure we stick to that."
The gowns were trumpeted by ministers as an example of Britain's swift handling of the crisis, but the order has been beset by difficulties as it remained in Turkey and delayed repeatedly, embarrassing the government, which eventually ordered a ban on any statements on when the equipment might finally arrive.
NHS staff are currently suffering shortages of personal protective equipment. Unions and professional bodies warned recently that health workers could refuse to work without protection.
This is not the first government coronavirus initiative that has failed to deliver the promised results. It comes after it asked companies such as Rolls-Royce and Dyson to produce ventilators for patients which have not reached final stages of testing. Ministers are also facing questions over their testing strategy of people for Covid-19 .
(Writing by Frank Prenesti. Editing by Michele Maatouk)