Sir Keir Starmer's (Labour) standing on the world stage has been "diminished", Parliament heard during an emergency debate examining the Prime Minister's decision to appoint Lord Peter Mandelson as US ambassador. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accused Starmer of "hiding from Parliament" because he was not present for the debate on the former ambassador's dismissal and his relationship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The debate came ahead of US President Donald Trump's state visit to the UK, which Badenoch warned risks being overshadowed by scandal. "It is extraordinary - extraordinary - that on the eve of the president's state visit, we are talking about the US ambassador who's been sacked in scandal," she told the Commons.
Calls for transparency
Badenoch issued a series of direct demands to the Prime Minister during the debate. "The Prime Minister needs to come clean about what he knew and when he knew it, not send his junior ministers to cover for him," she stated. She also called for the full publication of the "Mandelson-Epstein files" and demanded Starmer take responsibility for the ambassador appointment.
"But the Prime Minister is not here because he is hiding from Parliament, hiding from questions," Badenoch added. Prior to the debate, she had called for Starmer to face "serious consequences" if he has not been honest about what he knew.
Vetting process questioned
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper revealed that her department was not responsible for any failure to recognise risks in Mandelson's appointment to the Washington job. The Foreign Office was not asked to contribute to a due diligence process ahead of the decision, nor were any concerns raised with the department about the peer.
Her comments are likely to pile pressure on the Cabinet Office, Number 10 and Starmer for their role in deciding the Labour grandee was suitable for the position. Cooper explained that "the propriety and ethics team in the Cabinet Office conducted a due diligence process, prior to the announcement of Peter Mandelson's appointment on 20 December 2024 at the request of No 10."
Dame Emily Thornberry, chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, questioned whether those vetting Mandelson were told to "overlook" a "glaring national security and reputational risk." She revealed that her committee had called for Mandelson to appear before them before his appointment but he had not appeared.
Double standards claims
Labour MP Richard Burgon (Leeds East) claimed it is "unfair" that some MPs, including Diane Abbott and those who opposed cuts to disability benefits, have had the Labour whip removed but Mandelson remains as a peer. "It surprises me that we have a situation where the honourable member for York Central (Rachael Maskell) has been unfairly suspended from the Labour whip, along with others, for opposing disability benefit cuts," he stated.
Conservative former minister Sir David Davis supported these concerns, arguing there are double standards applied to those of "Labour royalty." Plaid Cymru's Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts suggested that Starmer had "staked his special relationship with the US president on the diplomatic skills of an ambassador who had a special relationship with the world's most notorious child sex offender."
Davis agreed that the affair had damaged Starmer's reputation, stating: "It has diminished the standing of our Prime Minister, and I regret that."
Sources used: "PA Media" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
