Clipper Logistics: Government accused of making 'grubby deals' after Leeds firm with Tory donor awarded £4.5m PPE disposal contract

Mr Parkin sold the firm to US-based GXO in 2022, but remains a shareholder at the company.

The news comes amidst claims by Labour that £3.7bn of emergency contracts were given to “friends and donors” of the Conservative Party since the start of the pandemic.

Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner said: “The Tories' conveyor belt of sleaze and incompetence has come full circle. They handed millions in public money to a donor’s firm with no experience of delivering PPE, then forked out millions more for the very same firm to incinerate it.

“Taxpayers’ cash is literally going up in flames as the Government’s bonfire of useless PPE grows.

“Ministers come clean about these grubby deals and explain exactly how a Tory donor’s company came to be awarded millions upon millions of taxpayers' money for this fiasco.”

The Daily Mirror reported that Mr Parkin has donated £730,000 to the Conservative Party since 2017.

A GXO spokesperson said: “GXO is proud that Clipper, which it acquired in May 2022, supported Britain during the pandemic. We continue to be focused on working with our customers across the UK.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “These contracts were awarded in line with procurement regulations and the details have been made public.”

“We continue to sell, donate, repurpose and recycle excess PPE in the most cost-effective way, as well as seeking to recover costs from suppliers wherever possible to ensure taxpayer value for money.”