Owen Paterson lobbying messages to Matt Hancock over Randox Covid testing released

The messages from two years ago, at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, show the former North Shropshire MP asking Mr Hancock to help ensure Randox, who Mr Paterson was working for as a consultant, received samples to use in laboratory tests as part of its bid to produce Covid tests.

Eventually £600 million of Covid testing contracts were awarded to the firm.

Mr Paterson resigned last year after he was given a 30-day suspension from the House of Commons for breaking rules on lobbying, in relation to his work for Randox and Lynn's Country Foods.

The former Northern Ireland and Environment Minister is not commenting on the messages, which have been released after calls by Labour MPs.

They began on January 26, 2020, when Mr Paterson told Mr Hancock that Randox could develop a Covid test in two to three weeks if it received 10 positive 'sputum' samples.

Mr Hancock assured the then North Shropshire MP he would look into it and went on to email Randox.

On February 25 Mr Paterson messaged the minister saying it had been 19 days since Public Health England had contacted Randox and while the company's test had worked there had been no more communication.

"It is incomprehensible given the current developments and time pressures," Mr Paterson wrote.

He went on to say that there seemed to be little sense of urgency or speed.

Mr Hancock, who later stood down as Health Secretary after breaching social distancing rules, assured Mr Paterson he had chased the matter up.

There was then no communication until September, when Mr Paterson wrote that he had visited Randox for the first time since February and had been impressed with its achievements in Covid testing.

A spokesperson for Matt Hancock told the Shropshire Star: "The extensive transparency publication proves Matt did nothing wrong. So much so, we encourage your readers to look at it. To suggest Matt was doing anything other than acting in the national interest is not journalism but proof of an agenda. Matt cannot control who contacts him, but he followed protocol and Owen Paterson's lobbying was flagged to officials.

"To suggest Matt should have ignored the UK’s biggest existing testing capacity because he was being contacted by Owen Paterson is absurd and would have been a dereliction of duty. Matt is incredibly grateful to Randox for the enormous part they have played in the national effort to combat Covid."

The Department of Health and Social Care said: “As the public would expect, at the start of the pandemic we took every possible step to build the largest diagnostic industry in UK history rapidly and from scratch – which has helped to stop the spread of Covid-19 and keep people safe.

“Building the scale of testing needed at an unprecedented speed required extensive collaboration with businesses, universities, and others, to get the right skills, equipment and logistics in place as quickly as possible.

“There are robust rules and processes in place to ensure that conflicts of interest do not occur and all contracts are awarded in line with procurement regulations and transparency guidelines. Decisions on whether to award contracts are taken by officials and approved by ministers.

“The documents given to the House show no evidence of any breach of these principles."