Lord Peter Mandelson Sacked As Ambassador To US
Prime minister Keir Starmer had told MPs on Wednesday he had "confidence" in Lord Mandelson. (Alamy)
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UK Ambassador to the US Lord Peter Mandelson has been sacked by Prime Minister Keir Starmer following growing pressure over his links to Jeffrey Epstein.
In a statement on Thursday morning, the Foreign Office said: "In light of the additional information in emails written by Peter Mandelson, the Prime Minister has asked the Foreign Secretary to withdraw him as Ambassador.
"The emails show that the depth and extent of Peter Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein is materially different from that known at the time of his appointment.
"In particular, Peter Mandelson’s suggestion that Jeffrey Epstein’s first conviction was wrongful and should be challenged is new information. In light of that, and mindful of the victims of Epstein’s crimes he has been withdrawn as Ambassador with immediate effect."
The Labour peer's sacking came after The Sun reported on Wednesday an email Lord Mandelson sent to Epstein in June 2008 following Epstein's conviction in Florida for procuring a child for prostitution and for soliciting a prostitute.
In the email, Lord Mandelson reportedly wrote: "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.”
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Starmer told MPs in the House of Commons he had "confidence" in Lord Mandelson when asked by Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch.
"The victims of Epstein are at the forefront of our minds, he was a despicable criminal who committed the most heinous crimes and destroyed the lives of so many women and girls," said Starmer.
"The ambassador has repeatedly expressed his deep regret for his association with him, he's right to do so.
"I have confidence in him and he's playing an important role in the UK-US relationship."
The remarks came after new correspondence between Lord Mandelson and Epstein was published, including a letter in which Lord Mandelson refers to Epstein as his "best pal".
Speaking to the YouTube channel Harry Cole Saves The West on Tuesday, Lord Mandelson described the remarks as "very embarrassing" and said Epstein has been an "albatross around his neck".
"One, I feel a tremendous sense, a profound sense of sympathy, for those people, those women, who suffered as a result of his behaviour and his illegal criminal activities," said Lord Mandelson.
"And secondly, I regret very, very deeply indeed carrying on that association with him for far longer than I should have done, and I regret very much that I fell for his lies.
"I fell and accepted assurances that he had given me about his indictment, his original criminal case in Florida, like very many people, I took at face value what he said.
"With hindsight, with fresh information, many years later, we realised that we had been wrong to believe him. He's a charismatic criminal liar."
PoliticsHome reported on Wednesday that Lord Glasman, the only Labour figure to be invited to President Donald Trump's inauguration earlier this year, had warned that it was an "unwise" appointment.
"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," the peer said.
The departure of Lord Mandelson, who was appointed as the UK's ambassador in Washington in December, is likely to prove challenging for Starmer diplomatically, due to Lord Mandelson's strong relationship with Trump's administration.
It also comes at the same time as Trump himself is under pressure for his own associations with Epstein.
Lord Mandelson also brought significant political experience to the current Labour government, previously serving as director of communications for Labour under former leader Neil Kinnock, as well as a Labour MP and cabinet minister under ex-prime minister Tony Blair, before being made a Labour peer in the House of Lords in 2008.
