Ex-aide backs UK’s Starmer over Mandelson appointment
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s one-time closest aide has backed his former boss, taking responsibility for encouraging the “wrong” appointment of Labor veteran Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington.
But Morgan McSweeney denied making the appointment by instructing officials to ignore procedures or allow it, while describing it as a “serious error of judgment” that cost him his job.
McSweeney’s testimony before a parliamentary committee backs up Starmer’s account of his war of words with former foreign office officials over who was responsible for failures surrounding the appointment and whether the British prime minister was briefed on the risks involved in appointing Mandelson.
“I advised the Prime Minister in support of this appointment and was wrong to do so,” McSweeney said in a statement Tuesday. he said.
“What I did not do was oversee the national security review, ask officials to ignore procedures, demand that steps be skipped, or communicate explicitly or implicitly that checks must be done at all costs.”
McSweeney said he made it clear to Starmer that there were “pros and cons” to the appointment, but the prime minister decided to go with who he thought would be best suited to lead US President Donald Trump’s administration.
The saga over Mandelson’s appointment to Britain’s top diplomatic post despite his past and known ties to US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has led to calls for Starmer’s resignation.
Starmer said his appointment of Mandelson was a mistake and expressed regret, but said all necessary processes were followed.
He also criticized officials for not telling him that a security investigation agency had recommended against the appointment.
Earlier Tuesday, a former British foreign office official said there was a clear sense of urgency about the timing of the appointment to ensure the new ambassador was in place “on or around” Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, 2025.
Philip Barton, who was a senior official at the ministry from September 2020 to January 2025, said he was not consulted on what he described as a political decision and that Starmer’s office was “uninvolved” in the review process for Mandelson to obtain security clearance.
Starmer appointed Mandelson in late 2024 and praised his “unrivalled experience”.
Mandelson, now 72, last served as a minister when Labor was in power 15 years ago.
Starmer sacked him in September 2025 after emails revealed the depth of Mandelson’s ties to Epstein.
British police arrested Mandelson in February on suspicion of abuse of public office, but he was not charged.
He is not facing sexual abuse allegations.
The row led to calls for Starmer to resign for misleading parliament over the appointment.
But parliament is likely to vote against a possible investigation into Starmer over these allegations later on Tuesday.
