Keir Starmer to face second bruising day in British Parliament over Mandelson scandal

Keir Starmer (House of Commons/PA)

Keir Starmer is to face another bruising day in British Parliament over the scandal surrounding Peter Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador.

Olly Robbins will have a chance to respond to the British Prime Minister, who blamed the sacked senior civil servant for “deliberately” keeping him in the dark over Mandelson’s failure to pass security vetting checks before taking the Washington DC posting.

The House of Commons will subject the Prime Minister’s latest efforts to lay out the facts of the scandal to further scrutiny on Tuesday, as MPs hold an emergency debate on Mandelson’s appointment.

Mr Robbins, until last week the most senior civil servant in the Foreign Office, will reportedly tell the Foreign Affairs Committee that the Government pressured him into clearing Mandelson, despite the peer’s relationship with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, and business links to Russia and China.

Mandelson, who spent nine months as US ambassador before fresh details of his relationship with Epstein emerged, was a political appointment to the plum diplomatic role, rather than the Washington job going to a career diplomat.

The Times also reported that Mr Robbins will use his “box office” appearance at the committee to reveal he did not see the formal recommendation by vetting officials that Mandelson should not be given clearance, while insisting the UK Security Vetting (UKSV) process is only advisory.

On Monday, the Prime Minister said he challenged Mr Robbins over why he went against the recommendation of UKSV.

Lord Mandelson (James Manning/PA)

“I did ask him and I didn’t accept his explanation,” Mr Starmer told the Commons. “That’s why I sacked him.”

The Prime Minister also said he would not have appointed Mandelson if he had known the peer had failed the checks and insisted there was no pressure from No 10 to push through the high-profile appointment.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch applied for the emergency Commons debate about the scandal, telling MPs it was “a matter of national security because the Prime Minister has admitted appointing a known serious security risk to our most sensitive diplomatic post”.

It is not known which minister will appear at the debate on behalf of the Government.

Sir Olly Robbins (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

The Guardian reported that the Intelligence and Security Committee, a cross-party group of parliamentarians which scrutinises matters of security, has received vetting documents relating to  Mandelson.

The peer was flagged as “high concern” by UKSV, and it was recommended that clearance should be denied to him, the Guardian reported.

Mr Starmer said in his appearance in the Commons on Monday afternoon that the Government was investigating security concerns relating to Lord Mandelson’s time as US ambassador.

He also said the terms of a probe into Government security vetting have been updated in light of the latest revelations about Mandelson and the inquiry will be led by Adrian Fulford, a senior judge and chairman of the Southport Inquiry.