Government to Release First Set of Files on Peter Mandelson

The government will begin releasing documents relating to Peter Mandelson's appointment as British ambassador to the United States on Wednesday, in what is expected to be one of the largest disclosures of confidential government papers since the Covid inquiry.

Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones will make a statement in the Commons after Prime Minister's Questions at around 12:30 to accompany the first batch of files. He described it as a "chunky publication" and insisted that the government has "no interest" in holding anything back. "The government wants to shine a light on these things as much as everybody else, that's why we're working with Parliament to publish these documents and be totally transparent about it," he told BBC Breakfast.

The initial release is expected to include a two-page Cabinet Office due diligence report that was given to Sir Keir Starmer before he went ahead with Mandelson's appointment in December 2024. Sources say that the report warned Starmer of the serious "reputational risk" of appointing Mandelson given his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. A source familiar with the report described it as "a two-page word doc that has been cut and pasted from Google," questioning why it was the only vetting carried out before the appointment was announced. "It's insane," they said.

The report is said to have included a 2023 Financial Times article detailing the extent of Mandelson and Epstein’s relationship, as well as references to an internal JPMorgan document from 2019 that found that "Jeffrey Epstein appears to maintain a particularly close relationship with Prince Andrew the Duke of York and Lord Peter Mandelson, a senior member of the British government." It also referenced photographs of the two men together, and suggested that Mandelson stayed at Epstein's Manhattan townhouse in June 2009 while the financier was in prison.

Officials have warned that Starmer's response at the time, which reportedly involved him asking former chief of staff Morgan McSweeney, a friend of Mandelson, to seek an explanation from him about the report's contents, could be seen as "completely inadequate." Potential conflicts of interest around Global Counsel, the lobbying firm Mandelson co-founded with clients in Russia and China, are also expected to feature in the files, as are details of his two previous resignations from government.

The wider document release, which MPs forced through a parliamentary procedure known as a humble address, could ultimately run to as many as 100,000 messages, according to one Whitehall official, covering all foreign policy correspondence that went through the Washington embassy. The scale of that disclosure has been a significant concern inside government. A second tranche, including WhatsApp messages and emails, will follow later, with Jones noting it was taking "a bit of time" to collect the relevant communications.

The process of deciding what can be published has involved the Intelligence and Security Committee working through which documents can be released with or without redactions without damaging national security or the UK's overseas relationships. An agreement has also been reached with the Metropolitan Police over what can be disclosed without prejudicing its ongoing investigation into Mandelson.

Mandelson, 72, was sacked from his position as British ambassador to the United States last September after the US Justice Department released files revealing the full scale of his relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He resigned from both the Labour Party and the House of Lords in February. He was subsequently arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office last month over allegations that he leaked confidential information to Epstein while serving as business secretary under Gordon Brown, which he denies doing. 

His lawyers said last week that his passport had been returned by the Metropolitan Police, which was taken as part of his bail conditions following concerns that he may try to leave the country, and that he did not constitute a flight risk. Mandelson has maintained that he has not acted criminally, did not act for personal gain, and is cooperating with police. He has apologised to Epstein's victims for maintaining the friendship.