David Cameron defends nominating ‘proud Scot’ Michelle Mone for peerage

Assets linked to Lady Mone and her husband have been frozen amid a National Crime Agency probe

David Cameron has said he nominated Michelle Mone for a peerage because she was “a proud Scot, a proud Brit, and a proud Conservative”.

The former prime minister, who made a surprise comeback as foreign secretary last year, said he believed Lady Mone was a “successful businesswoman and entrepreneur”.

Assets linked to Lady Mone and her husband Doug Barrowman have been frozen amid a National Crime Agency investigation into protective personal equipment (PPE) firm Medpro.

Baroness Michelle Mone. Picture: PA

Lord Cameron was asked by STV News if he took any responsibility for Lady Mone being able to refer her husband’s company to supply PPE to the UK Government during the pandemic. He appointed her to the House of Lords in 2015.

Lord Cameron said: “Well obviously Michelle Mone is responsible for what she does. Yes, I did nominate her for a peerage because at the time from what I could see she was a successful businesswoman and entrepreneur, a proud Scot, a proud Brit, and a proud Conservative.”

According to the Financial Times, about £75 million of assets, including a townhouse in Belgravia and an estate on the Isle of Man, have either been frozen or restrained following an application by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

A spokesman for Lady Mone and her husband previously said: “This comes as a result of a consensual process during which negotiations took place with the CPS. It allows the wider businesses and assets of the Barrowman family to operate normally and free from any restrictions or uncertainties.

“Doug and Michelle did not contest the application and were happy to offer up these assets, which means they can begin the task of proving their innocence more quickly. Mr Barrowman finds it deplorable that private matters such as this are being conducted in the public realm via leaks from government departments and the CPS.”

In response, the CPS said: “It would not be in the interests of the CPS to leak information about involvement in any case.”

Lady Mone has previously admitted she lied when she denied having connections to the company, a consortium led by her husband, which was awarded contracts worth more than £200 million to supply gowns and face masks.