Starmer says he wouldn’t have appointed Mandelson if he had known about failed security checks

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says he wouldn’t have appointed Peter Mandelson as U.K. ambassador to Washington if he had known about failed security checks.

Starmer told lawmakers on Monday that “I would not have gone ahead with the appointment” had he known.

He said the fact Mandelson had failed security vetting “could and should have been shared with me before he took up his post.”

Starmer earlier said he made the wrong judgment in appointing Mandelson.

Starmer is facing calls to resign after the revelation that Mandelson was given the job despite failing security checks. Mandelson was fired nine months into the job over his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will try on Monday to get a grip on a crisis that has left power slipping from his grasp.

Starmer will face a tough barrage of questions in Parliament when he stands up to explain why Peter Mandelson, a scandal-tarnished politician and friend of Jeffrey Epstein, became Britain’s ambassador to Washington despite failing security checks — and seemingly without Starmer being told about the concerns.

The revelation has left furious opponents calling for Starmer to resign and uneasy allies wondering what else the nation’s leader didn’t know about.

Starmer repeatedly told lawmakers that “due process” was followed when Mandelson was appointed. He now says he’s “furious” that he wasn’t informed that an intensive vetting process had recommended Mandelson not be given security clearance. The Foreign Office, which oversees diplomatic appointments, cleared him anyway.

Source: WPLG