British Prime Minister concedes error in choosing Mandelson as representative amidst controversy surrounding Epstein ties

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer acknowledged that he made a mistake by appointing Labour politician Peter Mandelson as the UK envoy to Washington, amidst a scandal surrounding Jeffrey Epstein's long-time associate, as he attempted to calm the growing outrage.

Starmer is facing renewed demands to resign after it was disclosed that Mandelson, who had a long-standing friendship with the late disgraced New York financier, was appointed as Britain's envoy to Washington last year despite failing security checks.

The Prime Minister claimed that he and other ministers were not informed until last week that Mandelson had failed the independent vetting process, and he blamed Foreign Office officials for not disclosing the security concerns.

Starmer dismissed Mandelson from his position in September 2025, seven months after he took up the post, following the emergence of new details about the depth of the ex-envoy's ties to Epstein, who died in a US prison in 2019 while facing sex-trafficking charges.

Addressing parliament about the escalating political controversy, Starmer stated that the facts about Mandelson's vetting could and should have been shared with him before he took up his post, and he admitted that he made a wrong judgment in appointing Mandelson.

Starmer expressed his disbelief that Foreign Office officials withheld the information from senior ministers, saying "it beggars belief that throughout the whole timeline of events, officials in the Foreign Office saw fit to withhold this information from the most senior ministers in our system, in government".

He also stated that if he had known before Mandelson took up his post that the recommendation was to deny developed vetting clearance, he would not have proceeded with the appointment.

Last Thursday, Starmer sacked the UK Foreign Office's top civil servant, Olly Robins, and announced a review of the security vetting process, telling MPs that he had set it in motion.

However, ex-civil servants have accused Starmer of scapegoating Robins, who is scheduled to provide his own account to a parliamentary watchdog committee on Tuesday.

Opposition leaders have called for Starmer's resignation, accusing him of incompetence and wilfully misleading parliamentarians and the public, with a range of allegations against him.

Starmer had previously told parliament in February that "full due process" was followed when Mandelson was vetted and cleared for the key role.