Friday, February 06, 2026
How long can Starmer last after Mandelson revelations?
The paper says that Starmer's dramatic U-turn followed intense pressure, led by former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, just hours after he admitted that he knew about Lord Mandelson’s continued friendship with the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein – but appointed him as US ambassador anyway:
Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership has been plunged into turmoil after furious Labour MPs forced him into a humiliating climbdown over the release of full vetting documents relating to Peter Mandelson’s appointment as the UK’s ambassador in the US.
The prime minister’s dramatic U-turn followed intense pressure, led by former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, just hours after he admitted that he knew about Lord Mandelson’s continued friendship with the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein – but appointed him as US ambassador anyway.
Despite the revelation, which led many to question Sir Keir’s integrity and judgement, he insisted he was repeatedly lied to by the disgraced peer, who he said had “betrayed our country” over the alleged leak of sensitive government documents to the disgraced financier.
On Wednesday night, ministers and other senior figures in Labour gave the prime minister an ultimatum that he must sack his controversial chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, who pushed for Lord Mandelson’s appointment as ambassador and brought him back into the heart of the government.
One minister told The Independent: “Morgan has to go – and should have gone months ago.”
The prime minister had attempted to restrict the publication of the vetting documents, arguing that some details would need to be redacted on national security grounds. That prompted accusations from Labour MPs that he was engaging in a “cover-up”.
After three hours into a Commons humble address debate on Wednesday, Sir Keir relented after Ms Rayner intervened to make it clear she would be supporting the Tory proposal for the independent Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) to decide which documents could be published.
It is unclear when the documents will be released to the committee and made public, but there is speculation that they could be available as early as Thursday.
Seizing on the U-turn, a Conservative spokesperson said: "Kemi [Badenoch] forced Starmer to admit he'd known Mandelson was still hanging out with Epstein after the child sex conviction, and No 10 went ahead and appointed Mandelson anyway.
“You could feel in the Commons that was the moment Labour MPs stopped backing the prime minister. The government have now had to cave to Kemi's demand for all documents to go to the ISC. Starmer is no longer in control; Kemi is calling the shots.”
The prime minister had earlier claimed that the police investigations into Lord Mandelson and diplomatic relations needed to be protected.
In a desperate bid to draw a line under the scandal at Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs), Sir Keir went on the attack over his former ambassador, who was sacked in September, after further revelations of his relationship with Epstein came to light.
With his hands visibly shaking under the pressure, he told MPs: “Mandelson betrayed our country, our parliament and my party.
"He lied repeatedly to my team when asked about his relationship with Epstein before and during his tenure as ambassador. I regret appointing him. If I knew then what I know now, he would never have been anywhere near government."
And with his future on the line, it is understood that Sir Keir is planning yet another reset with a major speech on Thursday, to position himself as the champion of “decency and respect”.
Despite the apparent mea culpa, MPs were left unconvinced by the prime minister’s anger and promises over transparency. During a debate over more than six hours, the fury on both sides of the House was fully on display.
At present the ire of Labour MPs seem to be focussed on the PM's Chief of Staff, Morgan Sweeney, whose position is surely untenable, but it could get worse for the Prime Minister. A few days ago there was speculation that Keir Starmer would be ousted after the May elections, now it is looking likely that he may not even last that long.
