No 10 will have no say on which Mandelson papers are released

Senior MPs and peers will have the final say on whether sensitive information is published relating to Peter Mandelson's appointment and role as US ambassador.

Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) said it had confirmed with the government that it alone would make the decision.

The committee said agreement had been reached on which papers would be published, with hopes some could be released "shortly".

Additionally, the Metropolitan Police and government have "agreed a framework" to determine which documents can be released without prejudicing a criminal investigation into Lord Mandelson.

The former peer was bailed under investigation following his arrest this week while police continue to investigate an allegation of misconduct in public office.

Sir Keir Starmer told the Commons he wanted to release the files - which could show what the government knew about Lord Mandelson's relationship with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein - but insisted he would not publish anything that could damage national security or diplomatic relations.

The government was forced to hand over control of the process to the cross-party ISC following concern by MPs that Downing Street could have too much say in the process.

The ISC said it had received a written guarantee that neither the prime minister nor the government would have the final say on what is considered too sensitive to disclose.

Lord Mandelson did not respond to requests for comment but the BBC understands his position is that he has not acted in any way criminally and that he was not motivated by financial gain.

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