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Officials showed “obvious bias” when dealing with a company run by colleagues of Dominic Cummings.
The British High Court ruled that when the government handed over the contract to a company run by a colleague of Dominic Cummings, the prime minister’s former aide, its actions were illegal.
The court said on Wednesday that the government had allocated more than £560,000 ($794,000) to Public First to test the public’s views on the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, which showed “clear bias”.
The public relations firm, led by James Frayne and his wife Rachel Wolf, conducts research for the government on public health information about the coronavirus pandemic.
The two had previously worked with Cummings and Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove.
The campaign group Good Law Project (GLP) conducted a judicial review of the government, saying that in the early stages of the pandemic, contracts were awarded without any competitive bidding.
In her ruling, High Court Judge Finola O’Farrell concluded that the government’s failure to consider other companies could be seen as a “real danger” that showed prejudice.
“The defendant failed to consider any other research institutions by reference to experience, expertise, availability, or ability, which would lead an impartial and informed observer to conclude that decision makers are indeed possible or present a real danger. Bias,” she said .
‘Central Politics’
Officials have previously denied showing any favoritism towards “public first.”
Cummings has stated that he is more concerned about trying to save lives, rather than ensuring that all decisions made during the first wave of pandemics are legal in the eyes of the courts.
“On this basis, the court [should] Ruling that many of the 2020 decisions are also “illegal” because the Cabinet Secretary and I have repeatedly told officials “to focus on imminent threats to life/damage, not procedures/lawyer/Potemkin document traces,” he said on Wednesday Tweet after the ruling.
74 / On this basis, the court ruled that many decisions in 2020 are also “illegal” because the Cabinet Secretary and I have repeatedly told officials to “focus on imminent threats to life/damage, not procedures/lawyers/Potemkin File record”
— Dominic Cummings (@Dominic2306) June 9, 2021
A Public First spokesperson said the company is proud of the work it has done, adding: “The judge did not criticize Public First anywhere in the judgment.”
The National Audit Office has previously accused the government of failing to explain why certain suppliers were selected for procurement transactions worth approximately 18 billion pounds (US$25 billion) between March and the end of July, or how to deal with any conflicts of interest.
Opposition politicians also accused the government of implementing “neutral politics” through contracts, including purchasing unusable personal protective equipment and appointing people who have family or business connections with those in power.
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