Starmer-Mandelson latest: Prime minister faces judgement day after calls to resign over vetting scandal

In her letter to the Prime Minister, Kemi Badenoch said she claimed Sir Keir was “either lying or incompetent”.

The Conservative leader said: “As an experienced lawyer you will know the importance of telling the truth, but you will also know that many people think you are at best recklessly negligent and at worst dishonest about this whole affair.

“You have failed to answer very simple questions about what you do and what you know. This is disrespectful of Parliament, disrespectful of Parliament and contrary to the fundamental requirements set out in your own Ministerial Code.”

Ms Badenoch said: “This was a vulgar and shameful incident for you, your party and this country.

“Not only have you damaged our relationship with the United States and insulted the victims of pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, you have also undermined our national security by giving the highest diplomatic post to a person to whom the security services are of ‘high concern’.”

Sir Keir Starmer was warned about some red flags surrounding Lord Peter Mandelson’s appointment, Whitehall sources claim.

The Telegraph reported that these concerns focused on Labour’s links to Russia and China, which led officials from the UK Vetting Agency (UKSV) to advise against giving it the green light.

A senior source said: “The reality is that Starmer had already been warned of the huge risks and had brushed them off.”

Sir Keir allegedly went ahead with his US ambassador appointment despite this advice.

The due diligence report compiled by the Cabinet Office and presented to the prime minister cited concerns about his business interests in China and his non-executive directorship of Russian conglomerate Sistema, which he retained after Putin annexed Crimea in 2014.

UKSV’s findings were similar to the due diligence report in which specific advice given to former Foreign Office chief Sir Olly Robbins was not passed on to Sir Keir.

Sir Keir Starmer will fight to save his job in Parliament on Monday by revealing details of the “inexcusable” mistake officials made in failing to tell him Peter Mandelson had failed his vetting.

In a statement to the House of Commons, Sir Keir will face allegations that he misled Parliament after insisting to MPs that the correct process was followed in appointing Lord Mandelson to the US ambassador post and that he was kept in the dark about red flags by security experts.

Sir Keir last week effectively fired senior Foreign Office official Sir Olly Robbins after it emerged that Lord Mandelson had been granted enhanced review (DV) status despite checks carried out by the body responsible for assessing security clearances failing.

Whitehall veteran Sir Olly is expected to give his own account to MPs at the Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday.

The scandal has sparked calls for Sir Keir to resign from both opposition parties and his critics within the Labor Party, who fear an electoral bloodbath for the party in elections to English councils and the Scottish and Welsh parliaments in May.

If Sir Keir Starmer resumes his job on Monday, he faces another tough day full of headlines on Tuesday, when the former Foreign Office chief could be called before MPs to talk about the Mandelson review scandal.

Sir Olly Robbins was effectively sacked last week as Lord Mandelson conducted his vetting process to become US ambassador.

Sir Olly will reportedly this week staunchly defend his decision to confirm Lord Mandelson’s appointment, which could throw Sir Keir’s government into further turmoil.

A friend of Sir Olly’s told Times He said he was furious at the way he had been treated and was prepared to explain to MPs that he had followed correct procedure when apparently keeping Sir Keir in the dark about the review failure.

Sir Olly could appear before the Foreign Affairs Committee as early as Tuesday, with a slot currently set for consideration of “the work of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office” at 10.30am.

Sir Keir Starmer will make a statement about Lord Mandelson’s review process in the House of Commons on Monday afternoon.

A space for urgent questions or ministerial clarifications is available at 3:30 p.m. Sir Keir is expected to make a statement on that date, according to the parliamentary bulletin.

Opposition leaders called on Sir Keir Starmer to resign, while Kemi Badenoch claimed it was “absolutely not possible”. Sir Keir was unaware that Lord Mandelson had failed the review process.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said the situation showed “catastrophically poor judgment” and said the evidence showed Sir Keir had misled the public and parliament.

Green leader Zack Polanski said the comments should lead to Sir Keir’s resignation, adding: “Any other outcome would be a ridiculous scenario in which this Labor government and everyone in it would laugh in our faces.”

Reform England’s Nigel Farage said the prime minister had “misled parliament” and added that he was “lying to the public”. “Enough is enough. It’s time to let Starmer out,” he said.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is facing calls to resign after it was revealed last week that Lord Peter Mandelson, his pick for the role of US ambassador, had failed a security clearance.

Lord Mandelson was given the green light by Foreign Office officials, despite concerns after Downing Street made it clear they wanted Lord Mandelson to take on the role.

Downing Street last week claimed it only became aware of Sir Keir’s review failure when documents detailing his appointment emerged last week. No10 made claims Independent’s political editor David Maddox told Downing Street’s then director of communications last September that MI6 had failed to clear its then-Labour counterpart, largely due to concerns about business links to China.