Rishi Sunak tonight was branded “weak” over his failure to remove the Tory whip from Michelle Mone.
The Tory peer will take a leave of absence from the Lords following claims she made millions from a firm given more than £200million in lucrative Covid contracts.
She announced today she was temporarily stepping aside “in order to clear her name of the allegations that have been unjustly levelled”.
But critics said the Prime Minister should have acted against the lingerie tycoon over her alleged links to a firm awarded PPE (personal protective equipment) deals.
Labour ’s deputy leader Angela Rayner said: " Rishi Sunak was too weak to remove the whip and has left it to Baroness Mone to finally read the writing on the wall."
The leave of absence means Lady Mone will not attend sittings of the House, vote on any proceedings, and will not be able to claim any allowance.
Parliamentary records show she has not spoken in the Lords since March 2020, and her last recorded vote was on April 26 this year.
The Lords' standards watchdog is investigating Lady Mone over her alleged involvement in procuring contracts for PPE Medpro, although this has been paused during a probe by the National Crime Agency (NCA).
Her decision to take a leave of absence will not affect the Lords investigation, which she will still be expected to cooperate with..
PPE Medpro was awarded an £80.9million government contract in May 2020 to supply face masks, followed by a £122million contract in June 2020 to supply 25 million surgical gowns.
Lady Mone is facing questions over whether she benefited financially from the deal.
She is alleged to have tried to “bully and hector” ministers into awarding public PPE contracts to PPE Medpro.
She has consistently denied any "role or function" in the company, and her lawyers have previously said she is "not connected to PPE Medpro in any capacity".
But it was reported last week that the Tory peer and her children received £29 million originating from profits of PPE Medpro.
In the Commons, Mrs Rayner said the "VIP lane" used by the government to fast track companies recommended by MPs and peers for Covid contracts was a "scandal of epic proportions".
Referring to the PPE Medpro contracts, she said: “The face masks? Bought by his government from Medpro for more than twice the price as identical items from other suppliers.
“The surgical gowns? Rejected for use in the NHS after a technical inspection. All of them.
Never even used.
“It points to a total failure of due diligence - and the rotten stench of cronyism.”
She added: “The links between this company and the Tory Peer in question were never publicly disclosed. In fact, they were denied repeatedly by lawyers acting for those involved.
“We now know that the money ended up in offshore accounts directly linked to those individuals.”
In a statement a spokesman for Baroness Mone said: "With immediate effect, Baroness Monewill be taking a leave of absence from the House of Lords in order to clear her name of the allegations that have been unjustly levelled against her."
A House of Lords spokesman said: "Baroness Mone has indicated she intends to request to take leave of absence from the House of Lords.
"Members request leave of absence by writing to the Clerk of the Parliaments. In doing so they must confirm when they intend to return to the House.
"The Clerk will take a decision once he has received the formal request and after consulting with others as required."
