FILE PHOTO: British Ambassador to the United States Peter Mandelson walks on the day British Prime Minister Keir Starmer holds an emergency Cobra meeting to discuss Israel-Iran conflict, in London, Britain, June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy/File Photo
LONDON, Feb 4 - Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed regret on Wednesday for appointing Peter Mandelson as UK ambassador to Washington, saying the Labour veteran had created a "litany of deceit" about his ties to U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Starmer gave way to a demand by the opposition Conservative Party that the government publish information on how Mandelson was appointed. But he sought to narrow the scope of documents to be released, saying he would not publish any that could be prejudicial to national security or international relations.
Mandelson, a government minister when Starmer's Labour Party was last in power more than 15 years ago, quit the House of Lords on Tuesday over links to Epstein, and is now under police investigation for alleged misconduct in office.
Files released by the U.S. Justice Department last week include emails suggesting Mandelson had leaked government documents to Epstein, and that Epstein had recorded payments to Mandelson or his then-partner, now husband.
Mandelson has said he does not recall having received payments. He has not commented publicly on the allegations he leaked documents, and did not respond to messages seeking comment.
Starmer defended his own response, saying he had moved quickly to strip all titles and roles from a man he accused of "betraying" Britain.
But Starmer's explanation of how Mandelson was appointed did little to quieten opposition voices, who said the ambassador's selection in late 2024 put a question mark over the judgment of Starmer and his closest adviser, Morgan McSweeney.
MANDELSON 'LIED REPEATEDLY'
"I am as angry as anyone about what Mandelson has been up to. The disclosures that have been made this week of him passing sensitive information at the height of the response to the 2008 financial crash is utterly shocking and appalling," Starmer told a rowdy session of parliament.
"He has betrayed our country, he's lied repeatedly, he's responsible for a litany of deceit. But this moment demands not just anger but action and that's why we've moved quickly," he said after telling lawmakers he had agreed with King Charles to remove Mandelson from the sovereign's formal body of advisers.
Parliament was due to vote later on Wednesday on the release of documents related to Mandelson's appointment.
Starmer appointed Mandelson in late 2024, arguing that Mandelson's past work in the governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown and as the EU's trade commissioner made him an ideal person to navigate relations with Washington under President Donald Trump.
Starmer sacked Mandelson in September after seven months in the job, when documents emerged showing Mandelson had remained close to Epstein after the financier was found guilty in 2008 of child sex crimes.
Emails released last week appeared to indicate that in 2009 Mandelson sent Epstein a memo written for Brown about possible UK asset sales and tax changes, and in 2010 gave Epstein advance notice of a 500-billion-euro ($590 billion) bailout by the European Union.
On Tuesday, Starmer's government passed a dossier about Mandelson to police, who launched an investigation into Mandelson over alleged misconduct in public office.
"The Metropolitan Police have been in touch with my office this morning to raise issues about anything that would prejudice their investigations," Starmer told parliament. "We are in discussion with them about that."
(Reporting by Muvija M, Sam Tabahriti and Elizabeth Piper, additional reporting by Sarah YoungWriting by Sam TabahritiEditing by Paul Sandle and Peter Graff)
