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A Birmingham pharmaceutical wholesaler has reportedly been forced to ship millions of items of PPE abroad - after the government allegedly 'ignored' their offers of help.

Veenak International Ltd, which has a base on Coventry Road in Yardley, distributes pharmaceutical products across the UK and Europe.

The firm currently has around £5m-worth of PPE in its warehouses brought from China - the Daily Telegraph reports.

But - despite severe shortages of PPE kit in the UK - millions of surgical masks and respirators stored in Veenak's warehouses in Birmingham and London were last week allegedly transported on lorries to the EU.

The revelation comes as concern mounts over the lack of life-saving gowns, masks and visors for frontline staff.

At least 50 NHS workers have died from Covid-19, and hospitals fear running out of PPE as Public Health England changed its advice to allow the re-use of gowns.

Veenak International Ltd told the Daily Telegraph they had 'no choice' but to sell the gear abroad because the Government had repeatedly ignored their offers of help.

Shan Hassam, chief executive of Veenak International, said: “We stand ready to prioritise our British customers if given the opportunity to do so.”

For weeks, carers, nurses and doctors in Birmingham and across the region have been clamouring for more personal protective equipment - the masks, gloves and other kit they need to do their jobs safely.

Frightened for their own health and those they care for, caregivers and their advocates have said a shortage of PPE is 'unforgiveable' and puts lives at risk.

(Image: PA)

One nurse at a local hospital revealed to us how scared fellow nurses had got together to fashion their own protective visors out of pieces of laminate stapled to a piece of black foam, so anxious were they about the lack of new deliveries.

The chief executive of one social care provider in the city, Dave Rogers, of Midland Mencap, warned the situation around a shortage of PPE was 'critical' and he feared it could trigger the breakdown of the whole social care system in Birmingham.

City doctor Rinesh Parmar talked of staff feeling like "lambs to the slaughter" because of the quality and shortage of protective gear, even in the most critical intensive care settings.

And Asha Sharma, boss at Sutton Coldfield based Cherish Home Care, who look after hundreds of elderly people, told how staff were beginning to walk out, pressured by their worried families to stop working in case they become ill or bring infection home.

Yesterday, we told how three RAF planes scheduled to depart for Turkey to pick up vital PPE amid the coronavirus crisis had not yet left the UK.

The planes are set to head to Turkey to pick up supplies of personal protective equipment - but are only able to jet off after confirmation the PPE shipments are ready for collection.

Speaking at the press conference on Saturday, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said: "Supply in some areas, particularly gowns and certain types of masks and aprons, is in short supply at the moment and that must be an extremely anxious time for people working on the front line.

"But they should be assured that we are doing everything we can to correct this issue and to get them the equipment that they need."