At the heart of all this, there is also an error in judgment on my part. I should not have appointed Peter Mandelson. I take responsibility for this decision, and I apologize again to the victims of the criminal pedophile Jeffrey Epstein,” he said before the House of Commons. Keir Starmer has been weakened for several months due to his decision to appoint Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington, before dismissing him last September. He accused him of having “systematically lied” about the extent of his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, who died in prison in 2019.
The shady areas of the security clearance procedure
The case resurfaced on Thursday when the newspaper “The Guardian” revealed that the Foreign Office had granted Peter Mandelson security clearance for this position in January 2025, despite an unfavorable opinion from the background checking service. Keir Starmer claims he was not informed of this unfavorable opinion until last Tuesday.
“If I had known, before Peter Mandelson took up his position, that the background checking service’s opinion was to deny security clearance, I would not have followed through with this appointment,” he assured. “This opinion should have been communicated,” added the Labour leader, who had deemed it “unacceptable” and “unforgivable” to have been left in ignorance. In February, he told MPs that “all required procedures” had been followed when reviewing Peter Mandelson’s file.
“Downing Street has acknowledged that the Prime Minister inadvertently misled the House of Commons,” said Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch, calling on Keir Starmer to “set the record straight without delay.” Like other opposition leaders, she has called for the Prime Minister’s resignation, who came to power in July 2024 with a very large majority.
Reshuffle and tensions within the administration
The Prime Minister insists that his ministers and Downing Street were kept in the dark. He blames the Foreign Office’s services for authorizing the appointment despite this unfavorable opinion. A few hours after the “Guardian” revelations on Thursday evening, Keir Starmer sacked the head of the diplomatic service, Olly Robbins. Robbins will be able to present his version of the facts on Tuesday when he appears before a parliamentary committee. Several former senior officials have accused Keir Starmer of making a scapegoat out of Olly Robbins, while his government team has defended the Prime Minister.
The Scottish Affairs Minister, Douglas Alexander, explained on Monday morning what had led to the initial choice of Peter Mandelson, rather than a more traditional diplomat. “The reasoning was that the Trump administration was atypical and that an atypical ambassador could fulfill this mission for the UK,” he said, adding that “this assessment was wrong.” David Lammy, who was Foreign Secretary at the time of the appointment, also claimed not to have been aware of the unfavorable opinion.
A politically fragile situation for Labour
Keir Starmer had been warned of the “reputational risk” posed by Peter Mandelson’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein before appointing him, according to official documents released in March. The Mandelson affair has already cost the Chief of Staff and the Director of Communications their posts. The Labour leader is facing a 61% disapproval rate, according to the latest YouGov poll.
