Peter Mandelson to step down from House of Lords over Epstein scandal
It comes as officials have been drafting legislation that allows Mandelson’s peerage to be removed “as quickly as possible” after it emerged he passed on emails containing highly sensitive Government business to Epstein
Peter Mandelson is to step down from the House of Lords following the latest revelations about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
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The shock announcement was made in the upper chamber by the Lord Speaker on Tuesday afternoon.
Mandelson will formally retire from the House on February 4, Lord Forsyth of Drumlean revealed.
It comes as officials have been drafting legislation that allows Mandelson’s peerage to be removed “as quickly as possible” after it emerged he passed on emails containing highly sensitive Government business to Epstein.
Downing Street said material connected to the emails between the peer and the paedophile financier had been 'referred' to Scotland Yard.
Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown has also written to Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley with "information relevant to his investigation of Mandelson’s disclosure of market sensitive and confidential Government information”.
Mr Brown said: “I have today written to the Met Commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley with information relevant to his investigation of Lord Mandelson’s disclosure of market sensitive and confidential Government information to the American financier, Jeffrey Epstein, an inexcusable and unpatriotic act at a time when the whole government and country were attempting to address the global financial crisis that was damaging so many livelihoods.
“I have sent Sir Mark correspondence, exchanged between myself and the Cabinet Secretary last year, and I have also passed over information arising from it that may be important in his current investigation.
“I have included the letter I sent in September 2025 asking the Cabinet Secretary to investigate the veracity of information contained in the Epstein papers regarding the sale of assets arising from the banking collapse and communications about them between Lord Mandelson and Mr Epstein.
“I have also included the November 2026 response from the Cabinet Secretary who said about this that ‘no records of information or correspondence from Lord Mandelson’s mailbox’ could be found.
“Having drawn their attention to relevant evidence, the matter now rests in the hands of the police.”Number 10 branded the revelations from the latest batch of files “disgraceful”, adding that Sir Keir Starmer was “not reassured that the totality of the information has yet emerged”.
Sir Keir Starmer had threatened to introduce legislation within weeks to strip the former US Ambassador of his title, as the police are assess information relating to alleged misconduct in public office.
Read more: Starmer hands dossier on Peter Mandelson’s Epstein emails over to police
Speaking today, the Prime Minister said the former Labour Peer had "let the country down."
Files released by the US Department of Justice apparently showed Mandelson passing material to Epstein while serving as a cabinet minister in Gordon Brown’s Labour administration.
No.10 revealed today that the Cabinet Office referred material to the police after an initial review of the documents, saying it contained “likely market sensitive information” while official handling safeguards had been “compromised”.
Mandelson was awarded a life peerage in 2008, but had been on a leave of absence from 31 January last year following his appointment as UK ambassador to Washington.
He was sacked from the post in September after further details about his links to Epstein emerged.
The latest round of Epstein File releases also included emails claiming Epstein had sent Mandelson's husband tens of thousands of pounds.
The emails also appear to show Mandelson telling Epstein he would lobby his fellow ministers over a proposed tax on bankers' bonuses at the height of the financial crisis in 2009.
Mandelson has insisted he had “absolutely no recollection” of receiving payments totalling 75,000 US dollars (around £55,000) from Epstein between 2003 and 2004 as bank details in the files released by the US Department of Justice indicated.
Speaking to the Times, he admitted to a “lapse in judgment” after it emerged Epstein funded an osteopathy course for his husband Reinaldo Avila da Silva in 2009 at the time the government was dealing with the global financial crisis.
“In retrospect, it was clearly a lapse in our collective judgment for Reinaldo to accept this offer.
At the time it was not a consequential decision,” he said.
He rejected the suggestion that this left him open to bribery claims, with Epstein lobbying him to change banker bonus rules.“
There was non-stop discussion from the entire industry about reforming the banks and how to strike the right balance in regulation,” Mandelson said.
He added: “The idea that giving Reinaldo an osteopath bursary is going to sway mine or anyone else’s views about banking policy is risible.”
Mandelson's links to the sex trafficker have become even clearer in recent days, with dozens of documents released by the US Justice Department suggesting they were in regular contact.
Mandelson was removed from his role as US Ambassador in 2025 after the extent of his association with Epstein after the financier's release from jail for procuring a minor for prostitution was revealed.
He has previously said: "I was wrong to believe Epstein following his conviction [in 2008 for procuring a child for prostitution and of soliciting a prostitute] and to continue my association with him afterwards.
"I apologise unequivocally for doing so to the women and girls who suffered."
In an interview with The Times carried out last week but published on Monday, Mandelson referred to a "handful of misguided historical emails, which I deeply regret sending", and described Epstein as "muck that you can't get off your shoe".