Government must improve regulations for PPE procurement, says Arco

Arco has previously raised concerns about PPE supply contracts being awarded “opaquely” to organisations with no experience of PPE manufacture and supply during the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic. These organisations were unable to fulfil orders because they had imported inappropriate or non-compliant products, increasing the risk to the public, care home staff and NHS workers, according to Arco. In July, a report from the Public Accounts Committee concluded that the Government’s dash to buy protective equipment during the coronavirus pandemic resembled “panic buying”.

In its white paper, Arco calls on the Government to take steps to improve the regulation and guidance for the procurement of PPE, including creating a register of approved suppliers for the PPE required for the highest risk environments, to ensure there is a vetted list of suppliers that have the skills and capability to deliver the right products.

Arco also states that the Government should develop a robust PPE stockpile to mitigate supply chain risk. These products should be on-shore and ready for distribution, Arco said. The white paper urges the Government to improve domestic production of PPE and source it at scale, in order to avoiding international price rises and ensure continuity of supply.

Thomas Martin, Arco chairman said: “We’ve been vocal about improving pandemic preparedness for some time now, and we felt a responsibility to share our experiences and expertise to improve the UK’s response to emerging disease threats.”

Guy Bruce, chief executive of Arco, said: “This white paper establishes our experience in responding to global crises and includes our evidence and recommendations for the future.

“These focus on the key areas of pandemic planning, guidance on respiratory face fit testing, PPE compliance, ethical sourcing, PPE stockpiling and building a resilient supply chain. Whilst the recommendations are made to Government, they include actions that are relevant to all industry to ensure resilience and business continuity, should another pandemic occur.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We are committed to ensuring our supply chains operate at the highest legal and ethical standards. We are committed to learning lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and we have sought expert advice on PPE products that should be held to support the UK’s preparedness for future pandemic and emerging infectious disease threats.” The spokesman said the Government was also building clauses into contracts to ensure the product it purchases is of the best quality and has an auditable provenance.