Baroness Michelle Mone to be quizzed by cops over claim she sent racist text message
TORY peer and bra tycoon Michelle Mone is to be quizzed by cops over a claim that she sent a racist text message.
The 50-year-old millionaire has been asked to attend a police station to be interviewed under caution.
The Met Police is investigating a formal complaint made against Baroness Mone by an Indian man.
The tycoon allegedly told a man of Indian heritage he was a “waste of a white man’s skin”.
It is claimed the serving Tory peer made the remark in a WhatsApp message during a dispute in 2019.
In other texts, Baroness Mone is said to have described the man’s partner as “a mental loony” and “nut case bird”.
She is to be quizzed by cops over the alleged racist slur.
The investigation by the Metropolitan Police comes after parliamentary officials said the claim — made in a formal complaint — fell outside of their jurisdiction.
Lady Mone — who has not been arrested — has been asked to attend a police station for an interview under caution.
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She was previously due to meet officers in central London for the formal, taped interview, but pulled out at the eleventh hour.
The peer asked for the meeting to be re-scheduled — and it is expected to take place soon.
A Met spokesman said: “In June, police received an allegation of a racially aggravated malicious communication in relation to information posted on a messaging app.
“Police spoke to the complainant and advised that for the investigation to progress a statement would need to be taken; for this to be admissible in any future court proceedings, this would need to be done in person.
“In October, the complainant gave a statement to police and the investigation continues.
“A 50-year-old woman has been invited to attend for an interview under caution at a future date.”
'NOT IN COURSE OF HER DUTIES'
Baroness Mone, who made her fortune through the underwear empire Ultimo, was appointed to the Lords by then PM David Cameron in 2015.
News of the alleged incident first emerged in December, when it was reported that a man had complained to the House of Lords Commissioner for Standards.
Its officers said they were unable to investigate because the exchange was not in the course of Lady Mone’s parliamentary duties.
A representative later acknowledged that Scot Mone was aware of the claims.
A statement said: “Baroness Mone is 100 per cent not a racist. Baroness Mone and her husband have built over 15 schools in Africa in the past three years.”
Her lawyers later said Mone has “no access” to the messages and no “detailed memory of them”.
They added: “She is not prepared to comment on the messages unless and until their authenticity has been confirmed.
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“But Baroness Mone, in any event, very strongly denies that she is a racist, a sexist or that she has a lack of respect for those persons genuinely suffering with mental health difficulties.”
Baroness Mone is married to businessman and entrepreneur Doug Barrowman. They have a number of homes — including a £60million St Barts hideaway with its own nightclub and theatre, which is up for sale.
How she rose to the top
By Berny Torre
MICHELLE Mone became a multi-millionaire after leaving school at 15 with no qualifications.
She grew up in Glasgow’s East End and worked in marketing.
Three years after dropping out of school to become a model, she married first husband Michael Bone. Together they set up MJM International in 1996.
She launched Ultimo at Selfridges in central London in 1999 and her cleavage-enhancing silicone bra designs lifted the business to pre-tax profits of £39million by 2015.
She was made an OBE for her contribution to business in 2010 and became a life peer in 2015 with the title Baroness Mone, of Mayfair in the City of Westminster.
That year, the mum of three announced she had “hung up her bra” and sold the Ultimo brand. Her first marriage ended in 2011 and she wed millionaire businessman Douglas Barrowman in 2020.
She is one of the UK’s highest-paid business speakers raking in up to £25,000 a speech.