No 10 put ‘constant pressure’ on foreign office to get Mandelson in post
Keir Starmer is under fresh pressure after the senior official sacked over the Mandelson scandal claimed he was under “constant pressure” from the Foreign Office to confirm the role of US ambassador regardless of the outcome of his security review.
In an extraordinary two-hour session, Sir Olly Robbins also told No 10 MPs they were trying to carve out a diplomatic role for the long-term Labor adviser and Starmer ally; He has since been promoted to the House of Lords but was suspended from the party due to his links to a convicted pedophile.
Sir Olly said No 10 had a dismissive approach to the review and wanted Peter Mandelson to come to Washington “as soon as humanly possible”.
In another surprising revelation, he said the Cabinet Office did not think there was any need to vet the Labor ambassador because he had already held other high-profile roles, including as a colleague.
Even before the investigation was completed, Sir Olly suggested that the Prime Minister should have blocked the appointment because of something that had been revealed by an initial “due diligence” exercise, which found his appointment posed a “reputation risk”.
Lord Mandelson was sacked as US ambassador last year over his links to Jeffrey Epstein and now faces a police investigation over allegations he leaked sensitive government documents to the pedophile financier when he was business secretary under Gordon Brown.
Sir Keir hit back at Sir Olly’s statement, telling his cabinet that the senior civil servant had made an “error of judgment”. Although he claims to be “a man of integrity and professionalism.”
No 10 also rejected “condescending” claims about Lord Mandelson’s review and denied that Sir Keir’s former chief of staff Morgan McSweeney “nagged, cajoled or bullied” Foreign Office officials to clear his security clearance.
But in a blow to Downing Street, foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said she was “extremely concerned” by Sir Olly’s statement that he had been instructed not to tell his predecessor David Lammy about seeking a role for Matthew Doyle; that wouldn’t be a “proper” choice.
Cabinet minister Ed Miliband said he and Mr Lammy, now deputy prime minister, had concerns about Lord Mandelson’s appointment because of the risk of an “explosion”.
Earlier, Sir Olly said there had been “constant chasing” in the Prime Minister’s private office at No 10 over the appointment, creating an “atmosphere of pressure” among officials.
Other explanations included:
- The normal review process was carried out because the Foreign Office “stepped in” after the Cabinet Office said the checks were unnecessary
- Lord Mandelson’s withdrawal from candidacy after he was announced as ambassador could have caused a “major problem” for the incoming Trump administration in the White House.
- Sir Olly said he had not seen the final decision on Lord Mandelson and had been told the case was only “borderline” and the risks could be managed.
- In an urgent debate in the House of Commons Kemi Badenoch referred twice: The Independent Last September’s front page, which first revealed Lord Mandelson’s failure to review because he challenged the government’s version of events
- Sir Olly told MPs about the “atmosphere of pressure” when asked about reports that Sir Keir’s former chief of staff called his predecessor the most senior civil servant in the Foreign Office and insisted: ‘I just approve.’
Last week the Prime Minister sacked Sir Olly, accusing him of failing to disclose that Lord Mandelson had failed security checks.
However, Sir Olly said he had never seen the inquiry form and was instead informed by Foreign Office security staff that “UKSV considered Mandelson a borderline case and they were inclined to recommend that permission be refused”.
He said he was told the risks in his case were not related to Lord Mandelson’s relationship with pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Sir Olly insisted that the confidentiality of the investigation process was “designed to protect the national security of the United Kingdom”.
Stating that he did not know why he was fired, he said, “As a human being, I feel very, very sad about this.”
He explained that when he took over at the Foreign Office on January 20, while the investigation was still ongoing, Lord Mandelson had already received approval from King Charles and the US, was allowed into the building and given access to “highly classified briefings” on a case-by-case basis.
Ms Badenoch said Sir Olly’s evidence showed the prime minister had misled parliament.
“Olly Robbins’ evidence is devastating for Keir Starmer,” he said.
“Not only did Number 10 make the appointment before the investigation was completed, but it is clear that Mandelson had already been acting as ambassador before the investigation and had even seen highly classified documents.
“However, with the ‘constant pressure’ exerted by No 10 on the appointment and their ‘condescending attitude’ towards scrutiny of Mandelson, it is now absolutely clear that due process was not fully followed. Keir Starmer misled the House.”
Mr Doyle said he had “never sought an ambassadorial post”, adding: “I was never aware of anyone speaking to the FCDO about such a role for me.”
