Starmer government releases additional documents on Peter Mandelson’s US ambassador appointment

Messages between the disgraced former ambassador to the US and Sir Keir Starmer's one-time chief of staff Morgan McSweeney were expected to be released.

Messages between the disgraced former ambassador to the US and Sir Keir Starmer's one-time chief of staff Morgan McSweeney were expected to be released.

The latest drop of Mandelson files has been humiliating for Keir Starmer. As private emails and messages between Peter Mandelson and MPs were published, his government was branded "pathetic", "disappointing", and "beleaguered".

On 1 June, the government released more of Peter Mandelson’s correspondence from his time as ambassador to the US. It did so because the public has demanded transparency on how this crooked Epstein associate came to return to government. And as we’ve seen, the newly released emails have not looked good for Starmer’s operation. As […] By Willem Moore

A fresh batch of explosive documents linked to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s controversial appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US have been released.

A fresh batch of explosive documents linked to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s controversial appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US have been released.

A fresh batch of explosive documents linked to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s controversial appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US have been released.

The UK government on Monday published thousands of private communications between officials and ministers pertaining to Peter Mandelson’s appointment and subsequent tenure as ambassador to the US. As the governing Labour Party considers replacing Prime Minister Keir Starmer this summer, the document dump exposes the rifts that will shape a possible leadership election. Bloomberg Opinion's Rosa Prince has more. Her views are her own. (Source: Bloomberg)

Documents were published to reveal what ministers knew about his links to Epstein, but instead exposed government riftsWhat is new in the latest release of Peter Mandelson documents?Peter Mandelson wrote to David Lammy on 18 November 2024, making a simple promise to the foreign secretary: “If you were minded to appoint me [as ambassador to Washington],” he said, “I would make sure you never regret it.”Since then, senior government figures, including Lammy and the prime minister, Keir Starmer, have had reason to look back at that appointment with almost nothing but regret. Continue reading...

Documents reveal remarkable extent of former envoy’s influence across government policy

Ministers were braced for embarrassing revelations ahead of the publication of the files on Monday afternoon

Peter Mandelson is seen outside his home in London, Monday, April 20, 2026The government has released the highly-anticipated second tranche of internal files on Peter Mandelson and his brief appointment as ambassador to the US.The ex-Labour peer fell from grace last September after the depth of his friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein was revealed.But questions remain around why he was appointed in the first place and what kind of influence he had with ministers.The Conservatives forced the Cabinet Office to release all documents related to the controversial hire earlier this year via a parliamentary procedure called a “Humble Address”.The first tranche of documents showed that Mandelson had got the top job against recommendations from security officials.Most ministers and civil servants have handed over their private exchanges with the former Washington attache for the second batch of documents.Some of the files have been redacted amid concerns about international security and the ongoing Metropolitan Police probe into Mandelson’s conduct in public office.The ex-Labour peer has not been charged and insists he is not guilty of any wrongdoing.Deciding to appoint Mandelson into the top diplomatic post has cast a huge shadow over Keir Starmer’s premiership.He has repeatedly accused Mandelson of creating a “litany of deceit” around his ties to Epstein, but his critics continue to lambast him over it.Here’s a look at the most eye-catching findings within the 1,400 pages...1. Pat McFadden Criticises ‘Tax-Raising’ Labour MPsMcFadden made clear his frustration with Labour MPs in private messages with Mandelson.Speaking around the time Labour MPs were rebelling over planned welfare cuts in May last year, McFadden said: “Every meeting I have is ‘who can we tax in order to pay benefits to others’. They’re asking the wrong questions.”The government was eventually forced into a huge climbdown on cutting welfare amid the backlash from Labour MPs.2. Mandelson Refused To Hand Over His Own WhatsAppsThe documents make it clear that the ex-ambassador did not want to assist the Humble Address process.The report reads: “On 31 March the [Cabinet Office] wrote to Peter Mandelson - via his solicitors - to request any information held on his personal phone. Peter Mandelson declined to comply with this request. The Government has no further recourse to search the personal devices of Peter Mandelson.”3. ‘Thick Of It’ Row Over Trump Red Box GiftOlly Robbins, the most senior civil servant in the Foreign Office who was dismissed over the Mandelson’s vetting row, exchanged messages with top officials – including the ex-ambassador – about a potential gift for Trump.In August 2025, Robbins wrote: “As I’m sure you know, [it] is clear that one of the gifts that would mean the most to the President would be a red dispatch box with the gold crest and lettering mimicking a UK Government Ministerial box with ’President of the United States”.Mandelson was involved in lengthy emails with other officials in trying to get the gift secured.He  then complained in a private email to No.10′s former chief of staff Morgan McSweeney that “the saga goes one… this is like something out of [the] Thick of It… I have gone tonto on this.” 4. Praise For Mandelson From Those Within LabourThe messages showed many Labour figures welcomed Mandelson’s appointment when it was first announced.Then-health secretary Wes Streeting told Mandelson that the “PLP [Parliamentary Labour Party] WhatsApps are stratospheric in praise” over Mandelson’s first public appearance in Washington.Pensions minister Torsten Bell messaged Mandelson when he was announced as ambassador, writing: “You. Are. Here.” He added: “Very proud of what is yet to come! Hope this comes off.”However, several ministers – including then justice secretary Shabana Mahmood and transport secretary Heidi Alexander – appeared to Mandelson’s messages.Then assistant government whip and now transport minister Keir Mather also ignored all contact from Mandelson.5. Wes Streeting’s ‘Mid-Life Crisis’Streeting, previously considered one of Mandelson’s “proteges”, was heavily criticised by Mandelson in his messages to Pat McFadden.Mandelson said it was “pathetic” for Streeting to have circulated “a series of videos and a note” to the cabinet after his intervention on alleged war crimes in Gaza.Mandelson then wrote: “I think Wes is experiencing an early mid-life crisis.”6. Tearing Down Ed MilibandMandelson wrote disparagingly about energy secretary Ed Miliband’s spat with ex-prime minister Tony Blair about net zero in late 2025.He claimed Miliband “couldn’t resist yesterday. So person and stupid. If he had played differently it would have had [a] fraction of attention.”7. Attacks On Keir StarmerDiscussing one of Starmer’s trips to the White House to discuss the Ukraine war, Mandelson tore into the prime minister’s “completely reductionist” approach.Speaking to Pat McFadden over WhatsApp, Mandelson said: ”[Starmer] Wants to avoid any encounter with journos that might involve him answering a question. No sense of opportunity for personal projection. Just avoid all risk. Always the same. They/he have no confidence.”He also attacked the No.10 operation, calling it “beleaguered and bereft” last July and said the top team “don’t think Keir knows what he wants”.8. Mandelson Told Lammy He Would ‘Never Regret’ Appointing HimOn November 18, 2024, Mandelson wrote a hand written letter to Lammy, then the foreign secretary, insisting that he was the right appointment as US ambassador.He said: “I just wanted you to know that if you were minded to appoint me I would make sure you never regret it.”He added: “I fear that navigating Britain’s interests through the Trump administration will require super-human skills and luck and a massive team effort.”He continued: “For me, it would be the last thing I do in public life and it would be a huge honour to serve you and the government in this role.” Subscribe to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.Related...Ex-Minister Jess Phillips Says She Threatened To Quit Over Peter MandelsonGovernment Accused Of 'Cover-Up' Over Redactions In Mandelson FilesKeir Starmer Mocked Over Mandelson Scandal In Brutal Saturday Night Live Sketch

Keir Starmer and Peter Mandelson during a welcome reception at the ambassador's residence in February last year.Peter Mandelson launched a brutal attack on Keir Starmer’s No.10 operation in private messages with a senior cabinet minister.The former US ambassador told Pat McFadden that Downing Street was “beleaguered and bereft” under the PM’s leadership.He also said the government lacked “verve” and needed to act “in a more Trumpian risk-taking and dare-devil way” to turn around Labour’s fortunes.The disgraced ex-Labour peer’s stinging criticisms were revealed in nearly 1,500 pages of documents released by the government into his appointment as the UK’s ambassador to Washington at the end of 2024.In one message to McFadden, who was Cabinet Office minister at the time and one of the PM’s closest allies, on July 30 last year, Mandelson said: “I went in to No.10 after I saw you. It is beleaguered and bereft.“It requires complete revamp and infusion of purpose and confidence to get anywhere.”That came two months after Mandelson had also condemned the government’s performance in the wake of the local elections in May last year.He said: “The problem is the government doesn’t give a sense of crusading to turn round and change Britain. That’s what I mean by panache, verve.“It does start right from the top, I am afraid, but you must all contribute more to it by breaking out of the Whitehall system and mould and appearing less like business as usual conventional ministers and, dare I say it, behaving in a more Trumpian risk-taking and dare-devil way.“At the moment ministers seem to be looking more to the Whitehall machine and the party base than to the public who are crying out for leadership.”Later the same month, McFadden expressed his frustration with Labour MPs preparing to rebel against the government’s plans to cut £5 billion from the welfare budget.He said: “Every meeting I have is ‘who can we tax in order to pay benefits to others’. They’re asking the wrong questions.”The government was ultimately forced to abandon its welfare reforms because of the size of the Labour rebellion.In a message to Mandelson before the climbdown, McFadden said: “I think it’s very bad. Defeat, pull bill or gut it all destroy his authority.”Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said: “They are no longer the Labour Party, they are the Welfare Party. It doesn’t matter who is in charge of these people, the party for Benefits Street will tax us all into poverty to pay for more welfare.“Pat McFadden has said in private what he and the Prime Minister deny in public. As I’ve said repeatedly, Labour MPs don’t understand where money comes from. They think our taxes are their money to spend, rather than the result of the hard work of the people in our country who deserve so much better.”The government was forced to hand over the latest tranche of documents relating to Mandelson’s appointment after MPs backed a so-called “Humble Address” in the Commons.Mandelson was appointed by Starmer with great fanfare in December, 2024, but was sacked just nine months later following fresh revelations about his links to the billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.Subscribe to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.Related...8 Eyebrow-Raising Takeaways From The Peter Mandelson Files And His Personal MessagesGovernment Accused Of 'Cover-Up' Over Redactions In Mandelson FilesKeir Starmer Mocked Over Mandelson Scandal In Brutal Saturday Night Live Sketch

Ministers were braced for embarrassing revelations ahead of the publication of the files on Monday afternoon

The Government has finally published a thousand pages of incendiary material covering the New Labour architect's disastrous appointment.

The Government has finally published a thousand pages of incendiary material covering the New Labour architect's disastrous appointment.

The UK government released a vast trove of documents relating to Peter Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador, in a move that threatens to cause fresh damage to Keir Starmer’s faltering premiership. More than 1,500 pages of documentation were published on the British government’s website just after 2pm. They include emails, text messages and other exchanges between government ministers, aides and Mandelson in the run-up to his appointment as US envoy, a post he held from February to September...

Files are expected to include e-mails and text messages between former U.K. ambassador to Washington and government ministers and advisers

The UK government released a vast trove of documents relating to Peter Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador, in a move that threatens to cause fresh damage to Keir Starmer’s faltering premiership.

The British government is to publish a second batch of documents about Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s appointment of Peter Mandelson as U.S. ambassador.

Documents expected to include messages between the former UK ambassador to Washington and cabinet members

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer will be forced to publish hundreds of private exchanges between disgraced former ambassador Peter Mandelson and members of his government on Monday, disclosures which are likely to put his beleaguered premiership in further danger.