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She is under pressure to repay tens of millions of pounds to the UK taxpayer after a bombshell court ruling over the PPE scandal – yet Michelle Mone clearly has other ideas for some of her and her husband Douglas Barrowman's cash. Speculation has been swirling that the former lingerie tycoon had relocated to America – and now The Mail on Sunday can reveal the couple have bought a £10 million four-bedroom, five-bathroom apartment on Florida's Fisher Island, an ultra-exclusive sanctuary nicknamed 'Billionaire Island'. The Glasgow-born pair purchased the vast luxury flat in July, just three mFonths before the High Court ordered PPE Medpro – owned by a consortium led by Mr Barrowman – to repay £122 million to the Government for substandard surgical gowns supplied during Covid. The tiny and secluded island – accessible only by boat or helicopter – is ranked as one of the richest places in the US in terms of income per head, and boasts some of the country's most expensive houses. Its dazzling list of celebrity property owners have included Hollywood legends Julia Roberts and Mel Brooks, chat show queen Oprah Winfrey. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos also has a home nearby. The MoS understands the pair had to undergo a rigorous vetting process before the sale was approved by a committee of the elite Fisher Island Club, which oversees the running of the enclave. Their almost 5,000 sq ft corner apartment in an exclusive waterfront building boasts a wraparound terrace with spectacular views over Miami Beach, Biscayne Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. The state-of-the-art pad has private lift entry and a kitchen with craftsman-designed features, granite countertops and top-end appliances. Mr Barrowman, a keen golfer, has access to a nine-hole course just moments from his door, while Baroness Mone, 54, can explore the compound's fitness centre and hair salon. A number of sources have spotted the pair at the island's luxury restaurants. The enclave also has two marinas, although the couple have sold their £6.8 million 40ft yacht Lady M. The revelations come after this newspaper revealed Lady Mone, who is facing calls to quit the Lords over her links to the PPE scandal, wanted to escape the UK. She and Mr Barrowman, 60, have begun offloading some of their British property empire, including their £19 million London townhouse and two Glasgow properties. Mark Williams-Thomas, who is representing Lady Mone, told The Mail on Sunday that Mr Barrowman's firm had bought the property and the couple were staying there on and off while renovating it. He said: 'Mr Barrowman is a professional investor who for the past 35 years has bought and sold all manner of assets. The property arm of his group recently bought a property on Fisher Island, Miami, with a view to refurbishment followed by resale.' Earlier this month, a judge ruled that the 25 million Chinese-made surgical gowns supplied by PPE Medpro when Covid struck in 2020 had not been properly sterilised. Lady Mone, made a peer by David Cameron in 2015, was said to have recommended the company to the Government via the so-called 'VIP lane' on the very day PPE Medpro was created in May 2020. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has demanded the company repay the cash in full, saying: 'We want our money back.' PPE Medpro has missed the October 15 deadline to pay and the firm has filed for administration, so recovering the funds could prove impossible. Its barristers claimed the firm had been 'singled out' and the gowns became defective because the NHS had not stored them properly. The Fisher Island condo was sold by estate agent Jill Eber, who cited client confidentiality when asked about the sale.
