Contracts of Interest
Have some companies had preferential treatment for lucrative government contracts?
File on 4 Investigates · BBC Radio 4
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (open.live.bbc.co.uk) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
The COVID-19 pandemic led to an urgent need for a range of new government contracts which resulted in billions of pounds of public money being spent under emergency powers which suspended usual procurement rules around competition.
This new regime created an unprecedented situation where commercial firms were able to secure large contracts quickly. But did this mean that money was spent without due diligence, regard for transparency - and potentially value for the taxpayer?
In a joint investigation with The Guardian and the non-profit investigative organisation Source Material, File on 4 investigates whether some firms were given preferential treatment when lucrative contracts were being awarded.
Reporter: Paul Connolly Producer: Anna Meisel Editor: Gail Champion