The Peter Mandelson scandal threatens to bring down Starmer

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Keir Starmer is under increasing pressure, following the latest revelations about Peter Mandelson’s relationship with convicted paedophile, Jeffrey Epstein.

Starmer appointed Mandelson as the UK's ambassador to the US in 2024, but removed him in September after documents were released showing Mandelson had referred to Epstein as his “best pal” in a letter included within an alleged birthday book.

Now the prime minister is facing even more scrutiny, following the US government’s release of more than 3 million documents linked to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.

Within those documents, there are nearly 6,000 emails mentioning Mandelson.

On Wednesday, under questioning from opposition leader Kemi Badenoch, Starmer acknowledged he had known at the time of Mandelson’s 2024 appointment about the former ambassador’s friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. But he also said he was unaware of the depth of the relationship between the two men.

After a dramatic three-hour debate in the House of Commons, the government will soon release documents detailing what they did and didn’t know ahead of Mandelson’s appointment as ambassador.

In a press conference on Thursday, the prime minister apologised to Epstein’s victims and said he was “sorry for having believed Mandelson’s lies”.

There are now calls for Starmer and his chief of staff Morgan McSweeney to resign, though no Labour MP has yet gone public.

Photograph by US Department of Justice