Baroness Michelle Mone, who faced a freezing order on her £75 million assets due to a PPE contract investigation, has been permitted to retain around £15,000 per week from rental income on a Belgravia mansion. The property, purchased for £9.25 million by a company linked to her husband Doug Barrowman, is undergoing renovations, including the addition of a cinema room and spa. The freezing order was altered to allow the couple to keep the rental proceeds while the PPE deal is under scrutiny.
The amendment to the freezing order, approved by Judge Tony Baumgartner, Recorder of Westminster, in a confidential hearing at Southwark Crown Court, specifies that the rental income from the property is not restricted. The couple, who deny any wrongdoing, have not been charged despite the controversy surrounding the £122 million government contract awarded to their company, PPE Medpro, which was later ordered by a High Court judge to repay the funds for breaching the contract.
PPE Medpro, now in liquidation owing significant sums to the Department of Health and HMRC, was criticized by Mone for the court ruling, which she described as a victory for the government.