Former close aide to Keir Starmer admitted on Tuesday he was “wrong” to back the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the U.S., amid mounting political pressure.
Morgan McSweeney, once Keir Starmer’s closest aide and former chief of staff, told a parliamentary committee that he took responsibility for advising the Prime Minister to support Mandelson’s appointment, but denied bypassing official procedures.
"I advised the Prime Minister in support of that appointment, and I was wrong to do so. What I did not do was oversee national security vetting, ask officials to ignore procedures, request that steps should be skipped, or communicate explicitly or implicitly that checks should be cleared at all costs,” he said.
McSweeney added that his support for the 72-year-old Mandelson, who maintained a friendship with Jeffrey Epstein after his 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from an under-18 girl, amounted to a “serious error of judgement.”
McSweeney’s testimony comes as Starmer faces a vote by MPs later on Tuesday on whether to launch a parliamentary investigation into claims he misled the House of Commons over Mandelson’s vetting.
Anger over Mandelson’s appointment in late 2024 has resurfaced after it emerged he was granted security clearance despite concerns raised during screening.
Starmer, who has faced calls to resign, has said he was "wrong" to appoint Mandelson and has expressed regret. However, he maintains that all proper processes were followed. He has also criticised officials for failing to inform him that a security vetting body had advised against the appointment.
Earlier on Tuesday, former senior Foreign Office official Philip Barton said there had been a clear urgency to confirm Mandelson’s appointment in time for Donald Trump’s inauguration on 20 January 2025.
Barton told the committee he had not been consulted and that Starmer’s office appeared “uninterested” in the vetting process required for security clearance.
Starmer had praised Mandelson’s “unrivalled experience” when appointing him to Britain’s top diplomatic post in late 2024. However, the Prime Minister dismissed him less than a year later, in September 2025, after emails revealed the extent of his links to Epstein.
British police arrested Mandelson in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office. He has not been charged and faces no allegations of sexual misconduct.
Russia's Defence Ministry has said its forces are clearing the town of Lyman in Donetsk of Ukrainian forces, Moscow's state news agency Tass reported...
Uzbekistan will open an embassy in Georgia, the Central Asian country’s presidency has said. The announcement follows talks between Uzbekistan’s P...
President Donald Trump said Iran is keen to reach a deal with the United States, claiming Washington had paused engagement to allow funeral ceremonies...
Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of the eastern German city of Erfurt on Saturday as the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) opened ...
French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to use next week's NATO summit in Ankara to advance his push for greater European responsibility in secur...
Russia's Defence Ministry has said its forces are clearing the town of Lyman in Donetsk of Ukrainian forces, Moscow's state news agency Tass reported. Meanwhile, Russian attacks killed at least six people across three Ukrainian regions on Friday, regional officials said.
Uzbekistan will open an embassy in Georgia, the Central Asian country’s presidency has said. The announcement follows talks between Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze in Tbilisi.
President Donald Trump said Iran is keen to reach a deal with the United States, claiming Washington had paused engagement to allow funeral ceremonies for late Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of the eastern German city of Erfurt on Saturday as the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) opened its annual party conference, where delegates voted to keep Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla as the party's co-leaders.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has raised its forecast for the rapid emergence of a strong El Niño, warning the climate pattern is likely to drive higher global temperatures and intensify extreme weather in the months ahead.
India is investigating a data breach at Tata Electronics that exposed sensitive documents linked to Apple's unreleased iPhone 18 Pro, marking the government's first public comments on the incident.
Iran and the U.S. have concluded indirect talks in Doha without a major breakthrough, with discussions focused on maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and frozen Iranian funds. Both sides are expected to meet again after the funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
International politicians and religious leaders have paid respects to Iran's late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei throughout the day, ahead of his six day funeral ceremony which begins on Saturday. His casket is currently on display at the Iman Khomeini Grand Mosalla in Tehran.
Germany has requested urgent talks with China's ambassador following reports that Chinese authorities trained Russian soldiers, adding fresh strain to relations between Beijing and Europe amid the war in Ukraine.
Russia's Defence Ministry has said its forces are clearing the town of Lyman in Donetsk of Ukrainian forces, Moscow's state news agency Tass reported. Meanwhile, Russian attacks killed at least six people across three Ukrainian regions on Friday, regional officials said.
French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to use next week's NATO summit in Ankara to advance his push for greater European responsibility in security, with a bilateral meeting planned with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as Paris seeks closer coordination with key allies.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated U.S. President Donald Trump on the 250th anniversary of American independence, saying Russia and the United States share a special responsibility for maintaining global security as the world's two largest nuclear powers.
China said on Saturday it had launched a coast guard patrol east of Taiwan, prompting a strong protest from Taipei, which accused Beijing of illegally expanding its authority and undermining regional stability.
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