Michelle Mone: manufacturing tycoon Baroness hits back at PPE criminal allegations in Medpro-funded YouTube film

Founder of the Ultimo lingerie brand, and countless other successful entrepreneurial ventures, the outspoken Scot has blazed a trail in manufacturing that has catapulted her to household name status.

Yet, the 52-year-old firebrand finds herself now cast as the villain of the covid pandemic piece, under criminal investigation by the National Crime Agency accused of defrauding the tax payer of millions of pounds as part of her role in so-called VIP tendering lanes set up, supposedly, to accelerate the delivery of vital personal protective equipment (PPE) to NHS and healthcare workers whose very lives were at risk as they fought like hell to defeat the virus.

It is in that context that Ms Mone has, for the last two years, remained silent whilst being systematically vilified; subjected to a barrage of constant hateful threats and attacks towards her – someone threatened to throw acid in her face – and her husband Doug Barrowman.

And she knows how people feel about her. She said herself yesterday: “"Right now, I think people probably see me as a horrible person. A liar, a cheat, a thief. They’ve made up their minds.”

She’s right. That is now the public perception of Ms Mone following raids on her homes by the NCA in search of evidence relating to the millions of pounds she collected from the public purse during the pandemic. The only way to change that is to provide evidence to the investigation – and to the public.