UK PM Keir Starmer’s chief of staff quits over appointment of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador despite Epstein ties

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, resigned on Sunday after taking responsibility for advising the prime minister to appoint Peter Mandelson as the UK ambassador to the United States, despite Mandelson’s past links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. In a statement, McSweeney said the decision had proved damaging. “The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself. When asked, I advised the Prime Minister to make that appointment and I take full responsibility for that advice," he said. Starmer is under mounting pressure following the release of newly published documents in the United States, part of a large cache of Epstein-related files made public by the US Justice Department.

The documents suggest that Mandelson, while serving as the UK’s business secretary during the 2008 financial crisis, shared market-sensitive information with Epstein. The revelations have triggered a political storm in the UK, raising sharp questions about Starmer’s judgment in appointing Mandelson, 72, to one of Britain’s most important diplomatic posts in 2024. Mandelson, a former Cabinet minister, ambassador and senior figure within the Labour Party, has not been arrested or charged.

Starmer’s government has said it will release its own emails and documentation related to Mandelson’s appointment, maintaining that these records will show Mandelson misled officials about the extent of his contacts with Epstein. Mandelson was removed from his ambassadorial role in September following earlier disclosures about his Epstein ties. However, critics argue that the latest documents have intensified concerns and that Starmer should not have approved the appointment in the first place. Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police confirmed that officers searched Mandelson’s London residence and another property linked to him on Friday. Police said the investigation is complex and will require “a significant amount of further evidence gathering and analysis.” The resignation of McSweeney marks the most serious political fallout so far for Starmer, as scrutiny grows over how Mandelson’s appointment was approved and whether warning signs were ignored.