THE NHS must be run in the interests of public health, not private profit, campaigners demanded today after Boris Johnson admitted that personal protective equipment (PPE) shortages were a “tragedy.”

The Prime Minister said that the nation “couldn’t produce enough gloves, gowns or masks” in a call with Tory members, the Mirror revealed, contradicting previous statements by the government.

In February, Health Secretary Matt Hancock claimed that there had never been a national shortage “because of my team.”