Mandelson arrest latest: Ex-peer released on bail as first vetting files to be published next month

Sir Keir Starmer has faced severe criticism over his decision to appoint Lord Mandelson as US ambassador despite his links to pedophilia financier Jeffrey Epstein, with Scottish Labor Party leader Anas Sarwar calling for him to resign.

The Prime Minister admitted he knew of Lord Mandelson’s ongoing friendship with Epstein, but when asked, said his peer had “lied repeatedly” about the extent of the relationship.

Under pressure from Labor MPs and opposition parties, the prime minister agreed to release all documents related to the appointment.

The Liberal Democrats will use a parliamentary debate on Tuesday to similarly force ministers to release documents relating to the appointment of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor as trade envoy.

The former prince served as trade envoy between 2001 and 2011 and also faces accusations that he shared sensitive information with Epstein during that role.

He was arrested last week on suspicion of abuse of public office, then released under investigation.

Lord Mandelson’s arrest comes just days after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was detained on suspicion of abuse of public office.

The former prince was released under investigation.

Although he was stripped of his title last year, the former Duke of York is still eighth in line to the throne and an Act of Parliament will need to be passed to depose Andrew and prevent him from becoming king.

The UK Government will consider introducing such legislation after police complete their investigation into the King’s disgraced brother, the Press Association has learned.

The Liberal Democrats will deliver a low-key speech in the House of Commons in a bid to force the Government to reveal information about Andrew, who served as trade envoy between 2001 and 2011 (the same mysterious mechanism by which the Conservatives pressed for the release of files on Lord Mandelson’s appointment as ambassador).

The motion will call for any investigation and the release of documents relating to Andrew’s appointment, including correspondence from Lord Mandelson.

Lord Mandelson is accused of passing sensitive information to pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein while he was trade secretary.

The allegations emerged after the US Department of Justice dumped documents related to Epstein last month.

As part of the so-called Epstein files, emails from 2009 show Lord Mandelson conveying Gordon Brown’s adviser’s assessment of potential policy measures, including an “asset sales plan”.

It was also revealed that he discussed a tax on bankers’ bonuses and approved an imminent bailout of the euro the day before it was announced in 2010.

It was revealed that the emails were sent after Epstein became a sex offender.

Following the publication of the Epstein files, Lord Mandelson said he had “no recollection” of receiving payments totaling $75,000 (about £55,000) from Epstein between 2003 and 2004, according to bank details given in the documents.

Epstein is also said to have paid for an osteopathy course for Lord Mandelson’s husband, Reinaldo Avila Da Silva, in 2009, when the government was dealing with a financial crisis.

Although the arrest of Peter Mandelson is not as shocking as the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, it still has the capacity to shock.

Not so long ago, the concept of the ‘Dark Lord’ of British politics, known at Westminster as Mandelson, was something of an incomprehensible thing as detectives carefully escorted him to the police station for questioning. This is someone who holds not one but three Labor prime ministers, as well as the most senior Tory, in his thrall; because they were amazed at his ability to manipulate the message and his international connections.

Nobody did it better. He was part of the faction that carried Tony Blair to the top job and three general election victories. Even after being pushed back by scandal, he was rehabilitated by Gordon Brown. When Sir Keir Starmer secured the party leadership, he received a detailed memo from Mandelson outlining how Labor could win again. The next morning, Mandelson answered a knock on his door in Camden. There was Starmer, riding his bike from home in his tracksuit, desperate to learn more.

Sir Keir Starmer will chair a cabinet meeting on Tuesday following the arrest of the former US ambassador.

Questions are rising about the Prime Minister’s decision to appoint Lord Mandelson to the post.

The former Labor minister was released on bail pending further investigation, the Metropolitan Police said just after 2am on Tuesday.

My colleague Holly Evans explains:

Political correspondent Millie Cooke reports:

The government is not trying to reduce the number of children with an education, health and care plan (EHCP) as part of reforms to the special educational needs and disability (Return) system, Bridget Phillipson said.

The government estimates that one in eight children with an EHCP will switch to an individual support plan when they are reassessed from the end of the decade, while the other seven will keep their EHCP.

“That’s our best guess,” the education minister told LBC.

“That’s not a number we’re after. There’s no target. We’re not trying to lower the numbers. We’re trying to provide a system that provides better and more timely support for children.”

Asked if he could guarantee that no child would lose support, he said: “I can because they will receive support under the new system.”

Political correspondent Millie Cooke reports:

Bridget Phillipson has vowed to continue looking after student loans amid criticism over the amount of interest being played by graduates on schedule 2 loans, but has refused to commit to changing the interest rate.

Asked what the government plans to do to address the problem faced by graduates, the education secretary said: “We will continue to look at that. “I am aware of what James has raised.

“In addition to what you said, I would also like to add that at the end of 30 years, this will be completely erased.”

Asked if he could promise to change the measure of inflation from PPI to CPI, he told LBC: “No I can’t. Anyway, I’ll answer as you said we didn’t introduce this system. We didn’t introduce this system, it worked from 2012 to 2023… The difficulty with reforming the student finance system is that while things like changing the interest rate may seem attractive on the surface, doing things like changing the interest rate doesn’t always have the desired effect. The system is fairer, especially for less well-off students.” for.”

He added: “It’s a really complex system. It’s evolved over time. It’s not a system I would put in place but we’re where we are now. We’ll see if there’s anything we can do about it of course, we’re keeping it open and under review.”