MISSING messages between disgraced former ambassador Peter Mandelson and the most senior UK Government minister have sparked accusations of a “Labour cover-up”.
Keir Starmer, Rachel Reeves and David Lammy all use disappearing messages, The Times reports, and so only messages that were not automatically deleted have been handed over as part of the Mandelson files disclosure.
Labour are also facing questions over the extent to which the Government has complied with Parliament’s demand to hand over all correspondence related to Mandelson’s appointment after it emerged that texts between a top minister and the former diplomat were not included in the two releases so far.
Messages exchanged by Darren Jones, the minister responsible for the release of the files, and Mandelson were published in The Spectator and showed how he told the disgraced associate of Jeffrey Epstein he was “so sorry” after his dismissal.
Separately, it has also emerged that Reeves held an undeclared meeting with Mandelson while he was chair of the lobbying firm Global Counsel.
The SNP, who have already referred Scottish Secretary Douglas Alexander to the ethics watchdog over his meeting with Global Counsel, have called for a “full probe” into Labour’s involvement with Mandelson.
Dave Doogan, the party’s Westminster leader, said: “The Peter Mandelson scandal looks increasingly like a Labour Party cover-up – and it stinks.
"It's now clear that the most senior members of the Labour government have failed to publish key messages with Lord Mandelson – and have failed to declare secret meetings with him and his lobbying firm Global Counsel.
"This isn't just embarrassing for them, it looks like a clear breach of the ministerial code and UK lobbying laws – and it shows that Mandelson was pulling the strings of the Labour government.
"The disgraced Labour Party peer should never have been allowed anywhere near power. It is deeply inappropriate that Mandelson was pushing his own business interests in government – and treating Labour Party ministers like his personal puppets and pawns.”
The SNP MP said the fresh revelations about Mandelson showed that the Prime Minister had displayed “appalling judgement” despite knowing about his links to Epstein and his record of being sacked as a minister.
Doogan added: “There must now be a full probe into why Labour government ministers failed to publish their exchanges with Mandelson, and failed to declare meetings they held with him, his lobbying firm and clients.
“It shows, once again, just how broken the Westminster system is – and the scale of the clear out needed right across the scandal-hit Labour government.”
