Labour Peer Issued Warning About “Unwise” Mandelson Appointment
UK ambassador to the US Lord Mandelson at a St Patrick's Day breakfast at the British Embassy in Washington DC, ahead of St Patrick's Day on Monday (PA Images / Alamy)
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Exclusive: Labour peer Lord Glasman issued a warning about Lord Mandelson's appointment as British Ambassador to the United States being "unwise".
"When I was in Washington DC for the inauguration, maybe 1,000 people showed me photos of Mandelson and [Jeffrey] Epstein together, blowing out birthday candles and buying clothes together. And I did say then that this maybe was an unwise appointment," Glasman told PoliticsHome.
Glasman, who co-founded the Blue Labour movement, was the only Labour figure to be invited to President Donald Trump's inauguration earlier this year.
The Sun has today reported that in 2008, after the late Epstein's conviction for procuring a child for prostitution, Mandelson emailed the paedophile, writing: “I think the world of you and I feel hopeless and furious about what has happened.
"I can still barely understand it. It just could not happen in Britain. You have to be incredibly resilient, fight for early release and be philosophical about it as much as you can... everything can be turned into an opportunity and that you will come through it and be stronger for it.
"The whole thing has been years of torture and now you have to show the world how big a person you are, and how strong. Your friends stay with you and love you.”
Mandelson called Epstein his "best pal", according to a letter in an alleged "birthday book" newly released by US lawmakers.
In an interview with The Sun's Harry Cole Saves The West, Mandelson called Epstein an “albatross around my neck”.
Keir Starmer said at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday that he had "confidence" in Mandelson – the Prime Minister's pick for US ambassador who took up the job in February this year – and pointed to "full due process" being followed.
The Prime Minister emphasised that Epstein was a “heinous” criminal and that Mandelson had expressed his “full regret”.
The Prime Minister's spokesperson later added: “The association has been a matter of public record for some time and the ambassador has repeatedly addressed questions on it."
He added that Mandelson went through “extensive security vetting and background checks” and that No 10 had confidence in the process.
