13 May 2023 , 18:40
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A Tory donor whose mum has been putting Boris Johnson up rent-free for months has been handed a Government contract worth £12.7million.
Jo Bamford, son of JCB mogul Lord Bamford and Lady Bamford, bought ailing coach manufacturer Wrightbus in 2021.
It will receive £6.4million of taxpayers’ cash, plus £6.3million from auto industry bodies, to develop batteries for electric buses.
Self-styled “green entrepreneur” Jo has personally given £88,000 to the Tories, while his family and their businesses have handed more than £14million in cash and gifts to the party since 2001.
In October 2021, months after Jo took over, Wrightbus received an £11.2million grant to develop hydrogen technology.
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Jo Bamford (L) with his father Lord BamfordAnother of his firms – Hygen, previously known as Ryze Hydrogen – is involved in projects funded by the Government’s Net Zero Hydrogen Fund. Julian Smith, former Tory chief whip, is an ex-employee, earning £60,000 a year for development advice.
And Science Minister George Freeman signed a contract to provide “strategic advice” to the firm, to be worth £20,000 a year. But he cancelled the contract and returned £10,000 after being rapped by second jobs watchdog ACOBA for failing to inform them before taking up the role.
The Department of Business and Trade said all grants “are subject to a formal application... to ensure value for money”.