Mandelson's lawyers say he was arrested over 'baseless' claim he was a flight risk

The former ambassador to the United States was arrested at his London home on Monday afternoon because police officers feared he was a flight risk, according to Lord Mandelson's lawyers.

In the suggestion that Lord Mandelson planned to leave the UK and move to another country, the peer's lawyers have told the BBC that there is absolutely no truth in the suggestion.

The Metropolitan Police has confirmed that it will not comment.

On Monday, the former Labour minister was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in a public office and then released on bail, pending further inquiry.

"Peter Mandelson was arrested yesterday, amid a promise from the police that he would attend a voluntary basis in an interview next month.

"The detention was prompted by a baseless suggestion that he was planning to leave the country and take up permanent residence in another country. In any such case, there is absolutely no truth whatsoever.

"We've requested the MPS [Metropolitan Police Service] for the facts used to support the arrest.

"Peter Mandelson's overriding priority is to cooperate with the police probe, as he has done throughout this process, as well as to state his name.

On Monday afternoon, Lord Mandelson was arrested and taken to Wandsworth police station in London for an interview.

In the early hours of Tuesday morning, he was at the police station for nine hours before being released on bail.

Lord Mandelson is also said to have forfeited his passport as one of his bail conditions.

Earlier this month, the force launched an investigation into allegations that, although he was serving as a minister, Lord Mandelson obtained business-sensitive government details for the late convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

Following search warrants at two addresses in Wiltshire and Camden on Monday, the arrest was made on Monday.

Lord Mandelson's position, according to the BBC, has not been unlawful and was not motivated by financial gain.

Lord Mandelson was seen being led from his London home by plainclothes cops who held him in the back of an unmarked vehicle on Monday.

According to the BBC, his arrest was carried out by officers from the Met's central specialist crime division.

Consultations between the police and the Crown Prosecution Service are ongoing.

Lord Mandelson had been delayed until May, according to the Met.

For decades, the former Labour spin doctor has been a central figure in British politics.

He began working for Labour in the 1980s, being instrumental in the New Labour movement and Sir Tony Blair's landslide election victory in 1997.

Lord Mandelson became the British Ambassador to the United States in February 2025, but he was fired in September after Downing Street announced that new details about his friendship with Epstein had surfaced.

Following the US Department of Justice's publication of a slew of documents last month, including emails between Lord Mandelson and Epstein, a lawsuit against him surfaced.

Lord Mandelson is said to have passed on an evaluation by an advisor to then Prime Minister Gordon Brown regarding reforms, which included an "asset sales plan.

On the day before it was announced in 2010, he appeared to discuss a cap on bankers' salaries and announce a potential bailout package for the euro.