Peter Mandelson files reveal clashes with Starmer's cabinet, Epstein probe

LONDON— Keir Starmer’s embattled government on Monday published a fresh tranche of files relating to Peter Mandelson’s short-lived and controversial time as Britain’s envoy to Washington.

More than 1,000 pages of internal government documents and messages shed light on the Labour grandee’s security vetting for the diplomatic job, his interactions with — and withering verdicts on — Starmer’s top team, and the run-up to and aftermath of his dismissal from his post.

Mandelson was sacked as Britain’s ambassador to the U.S. in September last year following revelations about his association with the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. A police investigation into his conduct was launched, which led to his arrest. He has not been charged, and his lawyers have said he is cooperating with the investigation and his overriding priority is to clear his name.

Starmer has repeatedly expressed regret for appointing Mandelson, saying the Labour veteran had created a “litany of deceit” around his ties to Epstein. But he has faced a huge number of questions about Mandelson’s influence on the government and whether enough was done to probe his past before he was appointed.

POLITICO’s team pored over the files. Here’s what we’ve learned.

Mandelson said there would be no regrets about picking him

Mandelson wrote to David Lammy promising he would “never regret” appointing him to the top diplomatic post of U.S. ambassador.

“I just wanted you to know that if you were minded to appoint me, I would make sure you never regret it,” Mandelson said in a handwritten letter to the then U.K. foreign secretary.

“I fear that navigating Britain’s interests through the Trump administration will require super-human skills and luck and a massive team effort,” he modestly added.

He challenged vetting demands to list foreign contacts

Mandelson pushed back against security officials vetting him for the Washington ambassadorship when they asked him to list his foreign contacts.

Emails from January 2025 show he queried the scope of the process, claiming he could not list “every foreign national I have ever met.”

In response, a junior member of UK Security Vetting (UKSV) team told Mandelson he should focus on “current or recent” contacts and “personal friendships” or “personal business contacts.”

An unnamed Foreign Office official advised him to send over a list of names to “keep UKSV happy,” and to “reassure the vetting team that you’ve been comprehensive, even if it’s all quite artificial.”

He took direct shots at Keir Starmer’s Cabinet once in post

Mandelson was deeply critical of key members of Keir Starmer’s top team — in texts to minister Pat McFadden, an ally of Starmer, the files show.

The then-U.S. ambassador said energy secretary Ed Miliband “couldn’t resist yesterday. So personal and stupid. If he had played differently it would have had [a] fraction of attention.”

The texts appear to refer to a disagreement between Miliband and former Prime Minister Tony Blair over net zero policies in late April 2025. Blair had said that limiting fossil fuels was “doomed to fail.”

Miliband was by no means the only Cabinet member Mandelson critiqued. The former U.S. ambassador attacked the chancellor’s vision: “I felt when Rachel was here that she was on a growth mission but without an argument about where the growth will come from or how.”

According to the messages, Mandelson feared Reeves was considering “a huge bank levy” to pay for winter fuel payments and ending the two-child benefit cap. “It would be tantamount to abandoning long term growth for short term [parliamentary Labour party] management,” he warned.

…and swipes at the the PM himself

In late July 2025, Mandelson told McFadden the mood in No. 10 was “beleaguered and bereft” after a visit.

After McFadden singled out certain individuals as “the best we have,” Mandelson replied: I agree but they don’t work as a team, they are not led and none of them really know what Keir thinks or wants.”

“In fact most of them don’t think Keir knows what he wants,” Mandelson added.

Meanwhile some ministers confided their own doubts about the government with Mandelson

McFadden — a Starmer ally, remember — regularly voiced his concerns about decisions taken by key No. 10 officials and cabinet colleagues with Mandelson over WhatsApp.

Messages exchanged throughout 2025 show McFadden had doubts about the communications strategy and personnel choices being pursued by No. 10, particularly in the wake of a disastrous by-election defeat for Labour, and amid a mutiny of backbench Labour MPs over the government’s welfare reform plans.

At one point, Mandelson asked: “How is No. 10 now in your view?” McFadden responded: “Not good.”

McFadden also privately complained about his colleagues.

In a message he sent to Mandelson in spring 2025 he said his meetings with Labour MPs are about “who can we tax … in order to pay benefits to others.”

Referring to a Cabinet away day in July, McFadden said of Starmer: “People want him to succeed. Angela notably silent.” That’s an apparent reference to the then-Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner.

Another minister Torsten Bell also communicated doubts to Mandelson. In July 2025, the pensions minister told the ambassador that “the big picture” for the government “is… messy.”

When Mandelson suggested to Bell he was not intensely involved in the trade deal being discussed with the U.S., Bell replied this was not “massively reassuring.”

DBT was cut out of trade talks by No. 10

No. 10 cut the Department for Business and Trade out of trade talks in the days leading up to last year’s U.K.-U.S. trade deal — amid concerns about leaks to the media.

In a WhatsApp exchange with former No. 10 comms chief Stephanie Driver, Mandelson complained about what he claimed was an “unbelievably irresponsible” briefing by DBT to journalists.

“We are reaching a critical time on trade negotiation here and it would be helpful if DBT could stop guiding papers eg FT,” Mandelson wrote. “We want the deal when agreed to make its own impact not conditioned by pre briefing.”

Driver replied that she shared his frustrations and said both special advisers and officials had been warned about the “risks and sensitivities” involved, with the Cabinet Office launching a leak inquiry.

Referring to a Guardian report published on May 7 last year about a visit by senior British trade negotiators to Washington, Driver agreed with Mandelson that the story had likely originated from DBT. “We cut DBT out of conversations today, the risk is too high,” she wrote.

Two months later in July, Mandelson complained to Driver about an article by POLITICO’s Graham Lanktree about a planned trip by the then Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds to press Trump further on tariffs. “Hi. Can you stop this stuff from DBT?” Mandelson wrote. “We are trying our best here but this is totally counterproductive designed purely for a domestic audience.”

Mandelson offered the PM a meeting with Peter Thiel

Mandelson emailed Starmer’s chief of staff in July 2025 offering to set up a meeting between the British PM and Palantir boss Peter Thiel.

In an email to Morgan McSweeney and his deputy Jill Cuthbertson, he wrote: “I don’t know where you have been approached already but would the PM like to meet him?” Mandelson described Thiel as a “celebrated techie.”

The ex-ambassador’s links to Palantir have come under significant scrutiny given the firm was a client of his lobbying company Global Counsel. The ex-peer retained a stake in the company while serving in Washington.

In February 2025 Mandelson also suggested then tech secretary Peter Kyle use “more positive language about AI” ahead of a speech at the Munich Security Conference. The cabinet minister said he would “action” the prompt and six days later told the event that the U.K. “reject the doomsayers and the pessimists” about AI.

Mandelson met law enforcement agency that reviewed Epstein allegations against him

Mandelson met with the director general of the National Crime Agency (NCA) days before he was fired for his association with Jeffrey Epstein.

The files refer to a meeting on Sept. 3 where the then-U.S. ambassador met with the NCA and discussed “changes in resource” as well as other redacted topics. He was sacked on Sept. 11.

Earlier this year the Financial Times reported that the NCA reviewed new allegations about Mandelson and Epstein in spring 2024.

Email disclosures from the United States Department of Justice (DoJ) relating to Epstein also suggest that the NCA had been assisting the FBI and DoJ with their Epstein investigations since at least 2020.

An NCA spokesperson said: “We do not routinely confirm or deny the existence of investigations, or comment on the exchange of information with international partners.”

Mandelson’s representatives were contacted for comment.

Mandelson had an email exchange with nuclear defense officials

The latest tranche of files suggests that Mandelson had an email conversation with the Ministry of Defence’s chief of nuclear defense. Mandelson’s access to top-level clearance has come under repeated scrutiny following his departure from the role, including whether he should have been granted Developed Vetting by security officials.

The email, which is redacted in its entirety, including the dates on which it was sent, came from from Madelaine McTernan, who is responsible for Britain’s continuous-at-sea-deterrent (CASD) fleet of nuclear submarines.

In April 2025 Mandelson was invited by McTernan to visit Barrow-in-Furness — where Britain builds its nuclear submarines — to “see our submarine building,” and thanked him for hosting “the nuclear dinner.” Mandelson replied that he was “very keen” to go on the visit.

A separate document shows Mandelson arranged meetings with two of Britain’s highest-ranking spooks before he was granted developed vetting clearance.

The then-ambassador-designate sought meetings with “C,” the head of MI6 who was at the time Richard Moore, and “Q” who was gadgets chief Blaise Metreweli. Metreweli went on to succeed Moore in the top job.

A civil servant noted Mandelson was “yet to receive his DV clearance” — but that he was being given access to higher classification material on a case-by-case basis because of his status as a Privy Counsellor, an archaic British body on which former top ministers are entitled to sit.

He railed against ‘Thick of It’ shenanigans…

Mandelson complained to Starmer’s then-chief of staff Morgan McSweeney that the “saga” of approving a gift for Donald Trump had become “like something out of [sic] Thick of It” — a popular British comedy satirizing Westminster politics.

Olly Robbins, the then-head of the Foreign Office, relayed that a red box with “President of the United States” inscribed upon it would be one of the gifts that “would mean the most to the President.”

Mandelson described the email process of approving such a gift as like something out of the popular BBC political comedy, adding: “I have gone tonto on this.”

…and shamelessly promoted his own podcast

Before he became ambassador, Mandelson promoted his podcast to Labour ministers.

In October 2024, Mandelson sent Leader of the House of Lords Angela Smith a WhatsApp message with a link to his How to Win an Election Podcast, adding: “Enjoy.” Exchanges that same year also show him texting multiple ministers to back his bid to be Chancellor of the University of Oxford.

Olly Robbins warned against Epstein files interview with journalist

Former Foreign Office chief Olly Robbins warned Mandelson against doing a disastrous interview with The Sun days before his dismissal as U.K. ambassador to Washington in September 2025.

On Sept. 9 Robbins emailed Mandelson to say he “recommended against” an interview with journalist Harry Cole regarding “continued media interest in your links to Jeffrey Epstein.”