Who is Peter Mandelson? New Labour architect to scourge of Starmer
The "prince of darkness" and architect of New Labour who was sacked as ambassador to the US due to his ties with Jeffrey Epstein
Lord Peter Mandelson has been credited for the rise of New Labour in the 1990s, but 20 years on, his past and dismissal as ambassador to the US are now threatening to bring down the Starmer government.
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The peer was sacked in September over his close relationship with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein and has also left the Labour Party, his political home of 50 years.
But as Sir Keir Starmer has since found out the hard way, sacking Lord Mandelson was just the beginning of the crisis, as the process by which the US ambassador appointment was made is further examined.
The prime minister sacked former foreign office official Sir Olly Robbins for failing to pass upwards that Lord Mandelson had failed the vetting procedure.
Sir Olly has now told a committee that he did so under pressure from No 10 to "just f***** approve" the appointment and that there was an expectation that the peer would be in America.
As the fallout rumbles on and pressure mounts on Sir Keir, we examine who Lord Mandelson is and how we got to this point.
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Who is Lord Peter Mandelson?
Lord Peter Mandelson had been at the forefront of the Labour Party for decades, but was in semi-retirement when he was appointed as US ambassador by Sir Keir Starmer in January 2025.
The 72-year-old had served in the cabinets of Sir Tony Blair and Gordon Brown during their administrations in the 2000s, while being MP for Hartlepool.
He had made his name in the 1980s as Labour leader Neil Kinnock's director of communications and in this role gained notoriety as a spin doctor, being dubbed the "prince of darkness" in the press.
During this period, he was known for coming up with the idea for Kinnock – the Movie, which promoted the party ahead of the 1987 election.
Behind the scenes, he played a part in reshaping the party from the outfit that had lost to John Major's Conservatives in 1992, to the New Labour movement which Tony Blair led into government five years later.
As a politician, Lord Mandelson was known for his support of the European Union, his backing of the Millennium Dome as a project, as well as reportedly pushing Blair towards the Post Office's Horizon IT system, which ultimately resulted in the subpostmaster scandal.
Lord Mandelson had for years been very private about his personal life, but is now open about being a gay man, and has been married to Reinaldo Avila da Silva since 2023, having been with the Brazilian translator since 1998.
Why was he made a Lord and could this status be taken away?
Having been European Commissioner for Trade from 2004 to 2008, Lord Mandelson was given his title and named as a life peer in order to become part of Gordon Brown's cabinet as business secretary.
Since the Epstein scandal, Lord Mandelson is no longer in the House of Lords and does not sit in the upper house.
However, he can still use the title Lord Peter Mandelson of Foy and Hartlepool as it is very difficult to rid a holder of a title, as it can only be achieved through an act of Parliament.
How did Lord Mandelson know Jeffrey Epstein?
Lord Mandelson featured 5,605 in the Epstein Files. Revelations included that he contacted Epstein during the financial crisis in 2008 to share confidential information, and that he also received £55,000.
After this information was revealed along with pictures of the pair together, Lord Mandelson was sacked as ambassador and retired from the House of Lords.
"Being ambassador here has been the privilege of my life," he wrote in a letter to embassy staff at the point of his departure.
"The circumstances surrounding the announcement today are ones which I deeply regret. I continue to feel utterly awful about my association with Epstein 20 years ago and the plight of his victims."
What will Lord Mandelson do now?
Lord Mandelson's immediate next task will be to assist investigations and he was most recently ordered to hand over his personal phone as part of the government's publishing of documents related to his appointment as US ambassador.
Beyond this, he seems set for retirement considering he is now in his 70s and his associations with Epstein have appeared to scupper his professional status.