British Ambassador to the US fired over Epstein revelations

Peter Mandelson has been fired as British Ambassador to the United States after further revelations emerged about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer dismissed Mandelson less than 24 hours after insisting: “I have confidence in him.” Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty told the House of Commons this morning that Mandelson was dismissed “in light of additional information.”

It follows two days of controversy after emails between Mandelson and the pedophile financier were published. In one letter, he called Epstein his “best pal.” The messages revealed that the former Business Secretary had maintained contact with Epstein when he was facing charges of procuring a child for prostitution. In those emails, Mandelson cast doubt on the validity of Epstein’s 2008 conviction – something which Doughty told the House was partly responsible for sealing Mandelson’s fate this morning.

In a statement this morning, the British Embassy in Washington said that “Peter Mandelson’s suggestion that Jeffrey Epstein’s first conviction was wrongful and should be challenged is new information.” The departure of Britain’s most senior man in DC will cause headaches on both sides of the pond, ahead of president Trump’s state visit next week. Some within government had hoped that Mandelson could brave the storm until after the visit. Clearly, that was a misjudgment.

The context of Labour’s ongoing deputy leadership election and the effective Tory efforts to prosecute a case in parliament will likely mean more awkward questions about Mandelson, including what No. 10 knew and when. Mandelson has now become the first public figure in modern British history to have been forced out office for three different scandals across four different decades.

Appointing the ultra-networker to the UK’s most senior ambassadorial appointment was to be a “high risk, high reward” approach. Ultimately, the strategic risk was not worth the short-term reward.