Full Breakdown
Perran Moon Suspended Amid Covid Bounce-Back Loan Investigation
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event: Suspension of the Camborne, Redruth and Hayle MP
Labour MP Perran Moon has been suspended from the party after voluntarily referring himself to a Labour Party investigation concerning a Covid-era Bounce-Back loan taken out by a company he co-directs. The suspension follows a party rule that members under formal investigation must step aside pending the outcome.
Background & Statistics
The UK government’s Bounce-Back Loan scheme, launched in May 2020, offered up to £50,000 per small business with a full government guarantee. By the programme’s start, £46 billion had been issued, and the Covid Counter-Fraud Commissioner later estimated up to £2.8 billion in fraud and error.
Moon’s company, Autoswot, a training firm for the automotive sector, was incorporated in June 2019— a year before the scheme opened— and filed its last accounts in June 2021. The firm applied for the maximum loan, repaid installments while operating, but ceased trading in late 2022 after “unforeseen external market pressures.” Similar scrutiny has affected other Labour MPs, including Bayo Alaba (suspended in August 2024) and former Reform MP James McMurdock, who left his party in 2025 after questions over fitness-company loans.
Official Statements & Responses
A Labour Party spokesperson confirmed Moon’s self-referral and reiterated the party’s expectation of “the highest standards” from elected representatives, adding that “robust processes” are in place and that no further comment will be made while the investigation proceeds. Moon has asserted that the loan application was made “in good faith,” that the company’s turnover forecast was accurate, and that he will cooperate fully and continue representing his constituents.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Mr Moon said: "A start-up automotive sector training company which I co-own had successfully applied for a bounceback loan to help with staffing and other essential business costs during the significant turbulence of the Covid pandemic.” — Mr Moon, labour party spokesperson
What’s Next
The Labour Party’s internal investigation will determine whether disciplinary action beyond suspension is warranted. The party has indicated that it will not provide additional details until the process is complete.
