Inquiry looks at contracts worth £50m awarded to company linked to Lord Chadlington after he emailed DHSC adviser

A Conservative peer introduced a company he was involved in to the government to supply PPE after he first contacted David Cameron by text message, the Covid-19 public inquiry has heard.

The inquiry is hearing evidence this week about the government’s multibillion-pound spending on medical supplies during the crisis, including its use of the “VIP lane”, which gave high priority to companies with political connections and awarded them £3.8bn PPE contracts.