Keir Starmer apologises to Epstein’s victims saying Mandelson was his mistake
Sir Keir Starmer has said he appointment of Peter Mandelson was his mistake as he apologised again to the victims of Jeffrey Epstein for the decision.
The crisis over the Prime Minister’s pick for British ambassador to the US erupted again following the release of official documents by the government yesterday.
They show Starmer was already aware of the ‘reputational risk’ of Mandelson’s close links with Epstein when he was chosen for the top diplomatic role.
Speaking in Northern Ireland today, the PM told reporters ‘it was me that made the mistake’ of the appointment, ‘and it’s me that makes the apology to the victims of Epstein’.
The documents released yesterday also showed that Mandelson, a former government minister under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, asked for more than £500,000 in severance when he was sacked.
Ultimately, the government gave him a taxpayer-funded sum of £75,000.
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Asked today if the ex-ambassador should hand back the money, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said: ‘Absolutely, I mean this is a man who has proven to be a traitor to his country.
‘He’s proven to be a traitor to many of his former colleagues, although that’s of less importance.
‘He’s someone that should never have been considered or appointed as ambassador, and he should do the right thing and return the money that he got as a payment.’
Sarwar described Starmer’s decision to appoint Mandelson as a ‘catastrophic error’.
Following further revelations about Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein earlier this year, he publicly called on the PM to step down.
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