PPE procurement in the early pandemic
Source: gov.uk (2025-10-30)

Information about the government's procurement exercise to secure critical personal protective equipment (PPE) during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As outlined in a written ministerial statement made on 30 October 2025 (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2025-10-30/hcws1006), the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published corrections regarding PPE procurement in the early pandemic (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/corrections-regarding-ppe-procurement-in-the-early-pandemic).

Today, the government is publishing further information about its exceptional procurement exercise to secure critical personal protective equipment (PPE) during the early months of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

We have already published details of all government PPE contracts in line with our transparency obligations. Today’s publication goes above and beyond those obligations as a measure of our commitment to openness about procurement processes during the pandemic.

Market overview in March 2020

The outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020 saw the total disruption of global PPE markets. Demand for PPE skyrocketed, leading to huge price inflation and limited supplies. Normal market dynamics ceased to exist, and with them our NHS procurement procedures. It was essential that government adapted its approach to sourcing PPE for health and social care frontline workers, moving extremely quickly where necessary and taking carefully considered risks with new suppliers where appropriate, in order to secure vital supplies in the teeth of stiff competition all around the world.

To save lives, we focused our efforts, resources and attention on sourcing PPE. We continue to stand by the efforts we made at the height of the early pandemic to prioritise and protect our staff in the frontline.

Adapting to market volatility

Within the first few months of 2020, COVID-19’s dramatic impact on public bodies, and their ability to secure necessary levels of PPE, was becoming clear. Global demand was outstripping supply, while at the same time brand new manufacturers and suppliers were rushing to fill the gaps in the volatile PPE market.

The government took decisive action. In order to secure the PPE needed by the NHS, in the quantities and to the timescales required, we adopted an entirely new ‘open-source’ approach to procurement.

Agile and decisive decision making

This was an entirely new approach to government procurement – we were inviting industry to come to us: opening up fresh sources of supply that we could rapidly vet as being technically, legally and commercially compliant in order to secure product in the rapidly-moving global market for PPE. Absolutely central to this new approach was our willingness to work with brand-new suppliers, because this was a brand-new marketplace for PPE.

The response from industry was phenomenal. Over 15,000 businesses came forward with over 24,000 offers within a 14-week period and we are hugely grateful for this support.

Managing and processing offers

To secure product quickly and effectively, we focused efforts on prioritising and processing offers. At the peak, over 400 staff were assigned to work on processing the offers of PPE, which were divided into a number of discrete workstreams.

A ‘UK Make’ workstream, for example, handling offers from UK-related sources, sought to establish a resilient domestic manufacturing base for PPE that would provide security of supply for the future. Other offers were specifically processed through a ‘China Buy’ workstream whose caseworkers could harness the expertise of our embassy in Beijing to identify and secure priority opportunities within China (the market leader in supplying PPE).

A small proportion of offers – approximately 430 of the 24,000 – were processed through a ‘high priority referral’ route.

These were all ways of managing the incredible volume of offers, and the breadth of sources, to ensure we could find the product when we needed it most. As of June 2020, when the peak had passed, all these procurement routes were closed down.

The High Priority Lane

There has been significant interest in the High Priority Lane. We take our responsibilities around due diligence extremely seriously and, as the National Audit Office has found, ministers were not involved in procurement decisions.

The High Priority mailbox was set up at a time when, with the country and citizens in need of urgent help, many suppliers and individuals were rightly passing on offers of support direct to their local MPs, healthcare professionals and civil servants – because they were keen that the government procurement effort knew what was available. The mailbox allowed MPs, ministers and senior officials to direct those offers to a dedicated location.

All offers that came to the mailbox were triaged by an official from the high priority appraisals team to be processed and responded to.

The criteria used to assess offers were the same as those used to assess any other offer from across the PPE procurement programme. The suppliers had to undergo the same checks and clearances as all others awarded a contract. End to end, the process of assessing an offer and awarding a contract was led by officials on the basis of published specifications and commercial expertise. Being referred to the High Priority Lane was emphatically not a guarantee of a contract; indeed, nearly 90% of offers referred through this route were unsuccessful. Those to whom contracts were awarded helped enormously, securing more than 5 billion items of life-saving PPE for the frontline.

The suppliers, and indeed those who referred them, were not notified that their offer was processed through the mailbox. This was not a separate channel for suppliers to provide offers to government; rather, it was an internal process set up for handling such offers.

As the information set out shows, the range of suppliers successfully processed through the high priority route was wide. They came from within government and outside, via politicians and civil servants, from healthcare professionals and commercial experts. The list also reflects the number of different types of ‘referral’, ranging from offers that were simply forwarded by staff working in ministerial private offices and personal referrals from MPs, to suppliers passed on by healthcare professionals and offers referred by the NHS’s existing supply chain – SCCL.

Due to incomplete record keeping, in a small number of cases we have not been able to identify the individual or team who directed the offer to this route.

We publish this account today as an insight into how the government mobilised the resources of our Parliamentarians, our businesses, the Civil Service and the whole country to meet the challenges of a national emergency. We are proud of the efforts to secure PPE supplies for our frontline workers at a time of incredible need. Above all, we are hugely grateful to all those who responded to the calls to help us protect those who care for the most vulnerable in our society. Our PPE stocks are now resilient. We have a strong UK manufacturing base, and a contingency stockpile should there be further spikes in demand.

Routes used to identify suppliers

The following lists indicate the range of routes used to identify suppliers.

High Priority Lane

The ‘source of referral’ is the individual or team that identified the organisation and the ‘actual referrer’ is the individual or team who directed the offer to the high priority route.

* This listing was added after the original publication. Following a review of our records, we discovered this offer was in fact processed through the High Priority route.

UK Make

Alpha Solway (Globus) Ltd

Berry Global Plastics Inc

Blue Tree Group

Burberry

Don & Low Ltd

Drager: UK

DTR Medical Ltd

Duraweld Ltd

Elite Plastics Ltd

Eumar Technology Ltd

Honeywell: UK

I Love Cosmetics (Expac) Ltd

Kingsbury Press

Lenzing Hygeine UK Joint Venture Ltd

Lincoln Polythene Ltd

LJA Miers and Co Ltd

McDonald and Taylor Healthcare Ltd

Medicom HealthPro Ltd

MediCare UK

Numatic International Ltd

PFF Packaging Group Ltd

Photocentric Ltd

Potter and Moore Innovations Ltd

Private White VC

Ramfoam Ltd

Redwood TTM

SIVA Group

Staeger Clear Packaging

Survitec Group

The Royal Mint

China Buy

Beijing Union Glory Investment Co. Ltd

Beijing Yuanlong Yato

China Meheco Co Ltd

China National Instruments Import & Export Group Corporation

China National Pharmaceutical Foreign Trade Corporation

China Sinopharm International Corporation

Jason Offshore Equipment

Qingzhou Yaowang Pharmaceutical

Shanghai Sunwin Industry Group Co. Ltd

Shenzhen DJ Medical Equipment Co. Ltd

Sino Greatwall Healthcare Co. Ltd

Weifang Yuanhua Plastic Products Co. Ltd

Winner Medical Co. Ltd

Xinxing Pipes International Development Co. Ltd

Yancheng New Cloud Medical Equipment Co. Ltd

Zheng Ben Yuan Pharmaceutical (Hainan) Ltd

Zhongcheng Huadao Group Co Ltd

New Buy

These are companies who did not sit on existing frameworks to supply PPE and the Department of Health and Social Care contracted with them in order to ensure the necessary supply of PPE. UK Make, China Buy and the High Priority Lane are all subsets of, and are included in, this.

Able Services Supplies Ltd

AEFO Technical Services Ltd

Aiya Technology Hk Limited

Arco

Ascot Signs Ltd

Ashfield Health

Asia Pacific Distributors PTY

Aventis Solutions Ltd

Ayanda Capital Limited

Beijing Union Glory Investment Co., Ltd

Beijing Yuanlong Yato

BELLAGIO GLOBAL

Biosana Health

BIOSPECTRUM LTD

Blueleaf Care

Bluetree Design & Print Ltd

Blyth Group

BOLLE BRANDS UK

Brandology

British Packaging

BRYSON PRODUCTS LTD

Bunzl

Burberry

Cambodian Textiles Worldwide Phnom Penh Works Co., Ltd

Cannagrow biosciences ltd

CARDIATIS / Worldlink Resources

Cargo Services Far East

CCS McClays

Central National Gottesman

CH AND L LTD

Chart One Automotive Ltd

Chemical Intelligence

CHINA MEHECO CO.,LTD

China National Instruments Import & Export Group Corporation

China National Pharmaceutical Foreign Trade Corporation

China Sinopharm International Corporation

CLANDEBOYE AGENCIES LTD

Clearmask

Community Pharma Company Ltd

Cooneen (MOD)

Crown Salvage Limited

Deflecto-Europe (Yearntree)

Direct Corporate Clothing PLC

Doja Limited

Don and Low LTD

Double Dragon International Ltd

Draeger Safety UK Ltd

DTC Consulting Ltd

DTR Medical

Dunlop BTL LTD

Duraweld

Dylan Imports Ltd

Elite Creations

ELITE Plastics

EUMAR TECHNOLOGY LTD

EURO PACKAGING UK LTD

Euthenia Investments Ltd

Excalibur Healthcare Services

Eyespace Eyewear Limited

Fannin

Fillcare Fareva

FirstAid4sport

Fluid Branding Ltd

Fonebox Assets Ltd

Forever Young International Ltd

Forward Industrial Products Ltd

Fourds Ltd Trading As Bloc Blinds

GBUK LTD

GEMINI SURGICAL UK LTD

GL Oil and Gas Services

Global Manufacturing Asia Limited

Global Unite Trading & Sourcing

GLSI

Guangdong Kingfa Science & Technology

Headwind China Ltd

HLP KLEARFOLD

Honeywell

Hotel Logistics Ltd

Ideal Medical Solutions

Imperial Polythene

Initia Ventures Ltd

Invios

Invisio Pharmaceuticals

Jason Offshore Equipment

Jingdong e-commerce

Kau Media Group

KINGSBURY PRESS

KPM Marine

L J A MIERS AND COMPANY LTD

Leagues Commercial Co Ltd

LIAONING ZHONGQIAO OVERSEAS EXCHANGE CO., LTD.

Linc Medical Systems Ltd

Lincoln Polythene Ltd

Love Cosmetics Ltd

LUXE LIFESTYLE LTD

Macdonald & Taylor Healthcare

Maxima Markets Limited

Mayfair Global (UK) Ltd

MDS Healthcare

MEDCO SOLUTIONS LTD

Medicine Box Ltd

Medicom

MELLER DESIGNS LTD

MGP ADVISORY LTD

MI HUB TA ALEXANDRA

MIHUB T/A ALEXANDRA

MIP UK LIMITED

Monarch Acoustics Limited

MYSHIPPER LTD

Network Medical Products

New Asia Logistic Services Pte Ltd

Nine United

NKD INTERNATIONAL LIMITED

Numatic International Limited

Ocean Footprint

Omni-ID Ltd

Opalion

P14 MEDICAL LTD

P1F Limited

Pakan Medical

Pestfix

PFF PACKAGING GROUP LTD

Pharmaceuticals Direct Ltd

Photocentric

Planet Aid

POLYSTAR PLASTICS LTD

Potter & Moore Innovations

PPE Medpro Limited

Prime Group

PRIVATE WHITE VC LTD

Protechnique / Huons Medicare

Protecting Heroes Community Interest Co (Si Freedman)

Purple surgical

Qingzhou Yaowang Pharmaceutical

RAMFOAM

Rawbridge Ltd

RBW Consultancy Ltd / Weihai Dishang Medical Technology CO Ltd

Red E Med

REDWOOD TTM LTD

Regal Polythene

Rehear Lab

Robert Housely Limited

Saiger Llc

Sanaclis

Schaefer-Global

SEAGO YACHTING LTD

SG Recruitment

SGH Global

Shanghai Sunwin Industry Group Co., Ltd

Shenzhen DJ Medical Equipment Co., Ltd

Sino Greatwall Healthcare Co., Ltd

SIVA Group

Skinny Dip

SMC Premier Cleaning Ltd

Southgate

Sovereign

Springfield Supplies

STAEGER CLEAR PACKAGING LTD

Summit Medical Ltd

Super 7 Wholesale

SURVITEC GROUP LTD TA RFD BEAUFORT

Sustainable Criminal Justice Solutions Community Interest Company

Swish Dental Limited T/A Biosana Health

TAEG Energy

Tara Mobile Uk & Huav Technologies Co Ltd, China TIK Films China

Technicare Ltd, trading as Blyth Group Ltd

The Paper Drinking Straw Co Ltd.

THE ROYAL MINT LTD

Thermoplastics Ltd

Toffeln

Top Gear Consumables

Tower Supplies

Trade Markets Direct

TRANSCONTINENTAL MARKETING LTD

UK GLOBAL HEALTHCARE LTD TA INDO UK INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH

UK-China Trading

Uniserve

Unispace Global Ltd

Universal Solutions Trading Limited

URATHON EUROPE LTD

Vanguard Air Services Ltd

Veritas medical solutions

Visage Group

Vital Innovations

Vitalcare UK

Weifang Yuanhua Plastic Products Co., Ltd

Weihai Textile Group Import Export Co Ltd (Dishang)

Winner Medical Co., Ltd.

Worldlink Resources Limited

Wuhan Xiaoyaoyao Pharmaceutical Technology Co., Ltd

Xinxing Pipes International Development Co., Ltd

Yancheng New Cloud Medical Equipment Co., Ltd.

YEARNTREE LTD TA DEFLECTO

Zenith Guild Enterprise Ltd

Zheng Ben Yuan Pharmaceutical (Hainan) Ltd.

Zhongcheng Huadao Group Co Ltd

Zhonghong Pulin Medical Products Co., Ltd.