Mandelson documents raise questions about Starmer's decision-making

"Who knows what's next? he told Laura Kuenssberg. I don't know what's next. I'm not going to disappear and hide that's not me. For some inside Downing Street, those words sounded as a warning or even a threat. Peter Mandelson still knows where the bodies are buried and could cause the government and Keir Starmer in particular a whole lot of trouble."

"One of the most eye-catching but perhaps unsurprising revelations was that the former ambassador was offered a severance payment of 75,000, after initially asking the Foreign Office to pay him more than 500,000. There is little from Mandelson himself in the documents beyond his request that he be allowed to arrive back in the UK with the maximum dignity and minimum media intrusion."

"The real danger for Starmer is not how Mandelson emerges from the documents, but that the focus is once again on his own decisions. The Cabinet Office's due diligence report was littered with red flags about the risks of the appointme"

Peter Mandelson was dismissed as UK ambassador to Washington due to his connections with Jeffrey Epstein. Four months later, he appeared on BBC television, refusing to disappear from public life, which concerned Downing Street officials who feared he possessed damaging information. Released documents revealed Mandelson initially requested over £500,000 in severance before accepting £75,000. The Cabinet Office's due diligence report contained multiple red flags about the appointment risks. The primary danger for Prime Minister Starmer stems not from Mandelson's conduct in the documents, but from renewed scrutiny of Starmer's own decision-making in appointing him.

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