Keir Starmer

I hope he becomes genuinely haunted by Mandelson, the sooner the better

Starmer is haunted by Mandelson and can’t do the job – Diane Abbott We spoke to Parliament's longest-serving female MP, Diane Abbott - who now sits as an Independent MP after being suspended from the Labour Party last year.

Starmer is haunted by Mandelson and can’t do the job – Diane Abbott
www.channel4.com/news/starmer...

Mandelson’s “ease in the milieu of sleazy plutocracy, his fluency in elite codes of geopolitical clientelism – these were his courtier’s calling cards. The traits that should have disqualified him from the job were mistaken by Starmer for credentials.”

The smoking gun:

Sir Olly Robins predecessor as FCDO, Sir Philip Barton, received a £260,000 pay off to leave the role five months early in January 2025 because he disagreed with Mandelson's appointment...

The Queen of Green bus travelling around Liverpool offering cheap food for sale is awesome. The people running it are heroes.
A real story of the country in 2026 not the day after day coverage of Mandelson.
Well done #C4News. Hope Sky News and BBC News follow the example.

Trouble with “he’s a decent guy who’s out of his depth” is most of Starmer’s failures are moral ones. Child benefit cap, Mandelson, the Gaza siege, the pledges. If what separates you from your stated principles is how it’ll play in the Daily Mail, it’s hard to argue you are in fact a decent person.

Dave Brown @DaveBrownToons on #Starmer #OllyRobbins #Mandelson #WashingtonAmbassador #ForeignOffice #FCO #EpsteinFiles @Independent – political cartoon gallery in London original-political-cartoon.com

From today's @financialtimes.com #mandelson #vetting

King’s speech will present bill to strip disgraced peers ... Legislation is to be brought forward as anger grows that disgraced members of the Lords continue to enjoy their status

Exc: Legislation to strip peers of their titles to be in King's Speech

Likely an attempt to appease fractious Labour MPs, the bill will create a mechanism to remove the likes of Mandelson, Doyle and other disgraced peers

observer.co.uk/news/nationa...

Lots of folks up in arms about the effort to get Matthew Doyle a plum FCDO job, quite rightly.

Honest question - because I was 11 at the time - was there similar scrutiny of the actual appointment of Mandelson as a European Commissioner? Because that was also giving a mate a soft landing.

the civil service vetting snake choked on the Mandelson elephant.. doesn't mean it can't still work for mice, rabbits or even small deer. Horrible metaphor ends.

The real story tying Starmer and Mandelson is being buried by a conspiracy of silence The system is rigged – and the political and media class rigging it are not about to draw our attention to the ugly reality of what they have been up to over the past decade

The real story tying Starmer and Mandelson is being buried by a conspiracy of silence.

Read my latest here: jonathancook.substack.com/p/the-real-s...

🚨Polling Expert Curtice: Starmer’s Mandelson Scandal Means NOTHING to Voters!
"None of it is moving the needle with the British public."
Source: Times Radio #UKNews

Mandelson was pretty much running the election campaign, it would appear, and his protégé McSweeny appears to have wanted him to get the job pretty much "because." This entire project is all about jobs for the boys.

Note shows No. 10 told Starmer to wait for security clearances before appointing Mandelson Two officials in Starmer’s team suggested holding off naming a new ambassador until after Trump took office.

Note shows No. 10 told Starmer to wait for security clearances before appointing Mandelson

www.politico.eu/article/note...

The vetting system needs to survive the Mandelson test | Institute for Government Political appointments require a different vetting process to officials.

The vetting system needs to survive the Mandelson test

Political appointments require a different vetting process to officials.

@jillongovt.bsky.social says we need to ensure the integrity of the system does not join the list of collateral damage www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/gove...

Morgan McSweeney, Keir Starmer’s former chief of staff, to be questioned by MPs Exclusive: McSweeney summoned by foreign affairs select committee in rare step, as Mandelson vetting row continues

Morgan McSweeney summoned by foreign affairs select committee.

McSweeney is to appear next Tuesday to respond to allegations that Downing Street put huge pressure on the civil service to approve Mandelson’s appointment as the UK’s ambassador to Washington

www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

the guy's not wrong but I think we knew all about Mandelson by June 2024, when this picture was taken

Kemi Badenoch asks Keir Starmer if he will "finally take responsibility" and resign

Starmer: "She claimed Mandelson could not have been cleared. She was wrong. She said Ministers must have been told. She was wrong. She rushed to judgement as always"

#PMQs

Keir Starmer challenged in cabinet over Peter Mandelson scandal as ministers step up criticism Home secretary questions PM’s praise of Olly Robbins days after sacking him and first Labour MP calls on leader to quit

Starmer was challenged in cabinet on Tuesday re handling of Mandelson scandal

Mahmood questioned his effusive praise of Sir Olly Robbins despite sacking him

Reeves and Streeting raised concerns re damage to relationship between ministers and the civil service

www.ft.com/content/8fea...

I bet those people pontificating about Mandelson’s association with Epstein are still flying with Virgin or watching Virgin media etc etc?

Switches on Sky News - Mandelson. Switches on 5 Live - Mandelson.
The hacks and pundits are in danger of looking obsessed and way out of touch with people's normal lives.

So Starmer's candidates for the US Ambassador post were:

- Mandelson (Prince of Darkness; Epstein's 'best pal')
- Matthew Doyle (Blairite comms chief; suspended from Lords over friendship with pedo Labour councillor)
- George Osborne (Tory architect of austerity)

A veritable gallery of rogues!

Will Mandelson sink Starmer?