PETER Mandelson has been sacked as UK ambassador to the US after details of his relationship with the late convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein were exposed.
The Prime Minister has been facing growing pressure to sack the Labour peer after it was revealed Mandelson called Epstein his “best pal” and wrote emails in support of the billionaire while he was being investigated for paedophilia offences.
It emerged yesterday that Mandelson had coached Epstein through his conviction for soliciting prostitution in 2008, as revealed by The Sun.
It has now been announced that Mandelson has been "withdrawn" from his role as UK ambassador to the US, days after the Prime Minister stood by his appointment. It is the third time he has been sacked from a government role, having been forced out twice under Tony Blair.
The announcement comes after Democrats in Congress released copies of the so-called “birthday book” on Monday after the documents were subpoenaed by the House Oversight Committee last month.
The Conservatives secured an urgent question in the House of Commons regarding Mandelson's position on Thursday morning.
In response, Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty told the Commons: “In light of additional information in emails written by Peter Mandelson, the Prime Minister has asked the Foreign Secretary to withdraw him as ambassador to the United States.
“The email shows Mr Speaker that the depth and extent of Lord Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein is materially different from that known at the time of his appointment.
“In particular, Mr. Speaker, Lord Mandelson’s suggesting that Jeffrey Epstein's first conviction was wrongful and should be challenged is new information, and in light of that, Mr Speaker, and mindful as we all are, of the victims of Epstein’s appalling crimes, he has been withdrawn as ambassador with immediate effect.”
Responding, Conservative MP Neil O’Brien said: "This is yet another extraordinary error of judgment by this weak Prime Minister, and I pay tribute to the Leader of the Opposition for yesterday securing justice for the victims of Epstein.
"This raises massive questions. It is not just that Peter Mandelson said that Epstein was his best pal and that he loved him. It wasn't just that he brokered a deal for him while he was business secretary.
"We now, of course, know that he was working for Epstein's early release after he was convicted.
"Don't say the boxes were ticked and the process was followed. What did the Prime Minister know at the point of his appointment?"
O'Brien called on the Government to publish all the documents relating to Mandelson's vetting ahead of being appointed ambassador.
Doughty replied that the content of the emails was “materially different from that known at the time of his appointment”.
He added: “In particular, Mr Speaker, the suggestion that Jeffrey Epstein's first conviction was wrongful and should be challenged is new information. Lord Mandelson has resigned, that decision has been taken.”
SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said he assumed Doughty was not one of the ministers who had to defend Keir Starmer's "lack of judgement" on this week's broadcast rounds.
He added: "I don't know what it is about the decades of scandals and being best friends with the notorious child trafficker and paedophile, which should have got some alarm bells ringing in Number 10 before this decision was taken.
"But if I listened correctly, the minister did not confirm to the Father of the House that all materials relevant to this would be published.
"Did the Prime Minister know about these emails prior to standing up in that dispatch box just yesterday to say he had confidence in Mr Mandelson, and does he retain the Labour whip in the House of Lords?"
Doughty would not confirm if Mandelson retained the Labour whip, adding: "That decision, that decisive decision, has been made, and as I've been very, very clear, all candidates are subject to routine, extensive vetting and background checks as a matter of course."
In the released document, Mandelson described Epstein as an “intelligent, sharp-witted man”, who “parachuted” into his life, in a message in a book compiled by convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell for Epstein’s 50th birthday.
The Labour grandee also wrote that after Epstein appeared in his life, he “would spend many hours just waiting for him to turn up”.
The letter also includes a photo of Mandelson with two women, whose faces are obscured.
Mandelson continued: “But wherever he is in the world, he remains my best pal!”
Following a photo of Mandelson sitting with Epstein, he concluded: “Happy Birthday, Jeffrey. We love you!”
Leaked emails first reported by The Sun also showed that Mandelson told Epstein in 2008 that “your friends stay with you and love you” while the billionaire was being investigated for paedophilia offences.
Mandelson went on to write to the disgraced billionaire: “I think the world of you and I feel hopeless and furious about what has happened.
“I can still barely understand it. It just could not happen in Britain. You have to be incredibly resilient, fight for early release and be philosophical about it as much as you can.”
Another message between Epstein and Mandelson’s private email addresses said: “I can still barely understand it. It just could not happen in Britain.
“You have to be incredibly resilient, fight for early release and be philosophical about it as much as you can.”
Earlier this week Mandelson's spokesperson said that his connection to Epstein “has been a matter of public record for some time”, when approached for comment over the book's publication.
Speaking to The Sun’s Harry Cole, Mandelson said he regrets “very, very deeply indeed carrying on” the association with Epstein “for far longer than I should have done”.
Epstein was first criminally indicted in 2006 in Florida on a state felony charge of solicitation of prostitution. He died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial.
