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British Prime Minister Keir Starmer today rejected calls to resign over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as the country's ambassador to Washington, despite his failure to meet security requirements.
Starmer said he had not been informed that the British Foreign Office had overturned a recommendation by security officials in early 2025 that Mandelson should not be appointed ambassador to the United States of America (US).
Many consider Mandelson's appointment to be risky because of his former friendship with American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. A senior MSP, Olly Robbins, resigned last night over this.
Starmer said he was furious that he had been kept in the dark about the information and called the whole affair shocking and inexcusable.
The Prime Minister added that he will present all relevant facts to parliament on Monday.
Opposition politicians are suspicious and skeptical of the fact that Starmer was unaware of the controversial decision, meaning that Mandelson did not successfully pass all the necessary checks, while the Prime Minister's office claims that he only learned of this this week.
Starmer's secretary, Darren Jones, said that the necessary checks are carried out by the Department of Security, which "reviews personal, religious and sexual information", and that the information is highly classified and only a few people have access to it.
Starmer repeatedly insisted that the entire procedure had been carried out adequately, while Mandelson's installation was announced in December 2024.
Mandelson began his diplomatic tenure in Washington in February 2025.
Documents released by the government in March under pressure from parliament showed that Starmer had ignored bad signals his administration had sent regarding Mandelson's appointment.
He warned that Mandelson's acquaintance with Epstein could pose a "reputational risk."
Starmer fired Mandelson in September 2025 after the ambassador was found to have lied about the extent of his connection to Epstein, and publicly apologized to citizens and victims of Epstein's exploitation and trafficking.
British police searched Mandelson's home and arrested him on February 23 on suspicion of abuse of office. He was released without bail while the police investigation continued, and Mandelson has previously denied any wrongdoing and has not been charged, nor does he face, any sexual harassment charges.
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