Mandelson should be stripped of peerage, PM says as it emerges he sent 'government documents' to Epstein
Sir Keir believes the former ambassador to the US “should not be a member of the House of Lords or use the title”.
Sir Keir Starmer says Lord Mandelson should no longer be able to sit in Parliament as it emerges the Labour peer sent confidential goverment documents to Jeffrey Epstein when he was business secretary.
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Sir Keir believes the former ambassador to the US “should not be a member of the House of Lords or use the title”, but the Prime Minister does not have the power to strip him of his peerage, Downing Street said.
It comes as emails released by the US Department of Justice reveal how Epstein was sent internal discussions from the heart of the UK Government in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.
The latest damning revelations from the Epstein files involve an email exchange from 2009, in which Lord Mandelson, then the business secretary, forwarded an economic briefing for Gordon Brown, then prime minister.
The memo was written by special adviser Nick Butler and began “Dear Gordon” and contained an assessment of the state of the economy.
“Interesting note that’s gone to the PM,” Lord Mandelson wrote to Epstein in the caption.
The email had a reference to the government having “saleable assets in hand” and Epstein asked Lord Mandelson: “What saleable assets?”
“Land, property I guess," he replied.
In another email exchange between the pair, Lord Mandelson appears to tell Epstein he would lobby ministers over a tax on bankers’ bonuses.
Read more: Kemi Badenoch calls for criminal investigation into Lord Mandelson over links to Epstein
Read more: Lord Mandelson 'to be summoned by Congress' to give evidence over links to Jeffrey Epstein
Bank statements from 2003 and 2004 appeared to show he received payments totalling 75,000 US dollars (£54,735) from the financier.
Epstein is also said to have paid for an osteopathy course for Lord Mandelson’s husband.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “The Prime Minister believes that Peter Mandelson should not be a member of the House of Lords or use the title. However, the Prime Minister does not have the power to remove it.”
Sir Keir urged the Lords to work with the Government to modernise disciplinary procedures to make it easier to remove disgraced peers.
Under the current arrangements, a new law would be required to remove a peerage, something that last happened more than 100 years ago to deal with members of the nobility who sided with the Germans in the First World War.
Kemi Badenoch has told LBC the Epstein files show 'potential evidence of corruption in public office’', as she threw her support behind a criminal investigation into the former US Ambassador.
"If there is evidence of potential criminal activity, then of course, yes, we need to have due process.
"But that should not be an excuse for the Prime Minister to say it's got nothing to do with him. It does. He appointed this man despite several warnings, multiple people raising red flags," she said.
Downing Street said the Prime Minister has also asked Cabinet Secretary Sir Chris Wormald to review “all available information regarding Peter Mandelson’s contacts with Jeffrey Epstein during his period as a Government minister”.
Lord Mandelson resigned his Labour membership late on Sunday night and the party has said he was facing disciplinary action.
Last night, in a statement the former US Ambassador said he had written to the general secretary of the Labour Party, Hollie Ridley.
His letter said: “I have been further linked this weekend to the understandable furore surrounding Jeffrey Epstein and I feel regretful and sorry about this.
“Allegations which I believe to be false that he made financial payments to me 20 years ago, and of which I have no record or recollection, need investigating by me.
“While doing this, I do not wish to cause further embarrassment to the Labour Party and I am therefore stepping down from membership of the party.
“I want to take this opportunity to repeat my apology to the women and girls whose voices should have been heard long before now.
“I have dedicated my life to the values and success of the Labour Party and in taking my decision, I believe I am acting in its best interests.”
Lord Mandelson said he had no recollection of receiving the payments, and did not know if the documents were genuine.
Other disclosures from the latest Epstein files show a man who appears to be Lord Mandelson in a series of undated photographs, stood in his pants and a T-shirt alongside a woman whose face has been hidden.
The peer said he “cannot place the location or the woman and I cannot think what the circumstances were”.
This is a breaking story. More to follow.