Keir Starmer said he was sorry to victims of Jeffrey Epstein and acknowledged that he regretted appointing Peter Mandelson as ambassador after newly surfaced material reignited questions about Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein. Starmer, who said he had never met Epstein, faced fresh pressure after he told lawmakers and the public that Mandelson had misled him about what he knew and when. The apology and political fallout came as documents dominated U.K. headlines and as British police investigated Mandelson for potential misconduct in public office.
Starmer’s remarks followed a parliamentary moment earlier in the week in which he was asked whether the vetting process in 2024 had identified that Mandelson’s friendship with Epstein continued after Epstein’s 2008 conviction. After the exchange prompted shock waves in the House of Commons, Starmer later said he had meant only that it had “been known publicly for some time that they knew each other.” On Thursday, he apologized more directly, saying, “I am sorry, sorry for what was done to you, sorry that so many people with power failed you,” and “Sorry for having believed Mandelson’s lies and appointed him.”
The political pressure inside Starmer’s Labour Party has intensified around the decision to appoint Mandelson in 2024 despite the former Labour leader’s longstanding links to Epstein. In September, Starmer fired Mandelson, 72, after emails were published showing Mandelson maintained a friendship with Epstein even after Epstein’s 2008 conviction for sex offenses involving a minor. Epstein died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial in the United States on federal charges accusing him of sexually abusing dozens of girls.
New documents released last week by the U.S. Justice Department added to the controversy. The material included papers suggesting Mandelson shared sensitive government information with Epstein after the 2008 global financial crisis, along with records of payments totaling $75,000 in 2003 and 2004 from Epstein to accounts linked to Mandelson or to Mandelson’s husband, Reinaldo Avila da Silva. The revelations also included chatty, jokey messages that critics said pointed to a closer relationship than Mandelson had disclosed.
British police are investigating Mandelson over potential misconduct in public office. Mandelson is not accused of sexual offenses, and he has said he never witnessed any sexual wrongdoing. Starmer and government officials have said the appointment was made because Mandelson’s trade expertise, contacts, and political know-how were viewed as assets in dealing with President Donald Trump’s second administration.
In Parliament, lawmakers questioned whether Starmer’s vetting process should have uncovered the extent of Mandelson’s ties. Paula Barker, a Labour lawmaker, said Starmer “has shown that his judgment is questionable.” In an interview with the BBC, Barker said she believed Starmer still had “a very long way to go to rebuild trust and confidence with the public, and trust and confidence within our party.”
A separate inquiry dimension has also emerged around how any vetting records will be released. The government plans to release files tied to the 2024 appointment to exonerate Starmer and show that Mandelson lied, but it does not fully control the process. Some documents are likely to be held back because of the police investigation, and others could be reviewed by Parliament’s independent Intelligence and Security Committee for potential national security implications.
The Mandelson controversy landed on top of other challenges confronting the prime minister. Starmer has faced setbacks since Labour’s landslide election victory in July 2024, including difficulty delivering promised economic growth and repairing public services while easing the cost of living. The government has also been beset by missteps and reversals over welfare cuts and other unpopular policies, while Labour has trailed Reform UK in opinion polls and leadership challenges were discussed even before the Mandelson revelations.
Political rivals and party dynamics are now adding to the uncertainty. Senior Labour figures, including Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting, have been tied in various ways to internal grievance and past relationships, while some lawmakers have called for Starmer to fire his top aide, Morgan McSweeney, whom many lawmakers distrust and who is widely seen as a force behind Mandelson’s appointment. Legislator Karl Turner said the prime minister should “get rid of those advisers who frankly have given terrible advice to him over these weeks and months,” and Starmer vowed on Thursday to continue the “vital work” of governing.
Rob Ford, a political science professor at the University of Manchester, described Starmer’s position as precarious, saying he was “now essentially a boxer on the ropes” whose authority is “seriously shot.” Ford added that Starmer could face removal quickly or remain in office for months or years, but he said the end of Starmer’s premiership would eventually be traced back to the decision to appoint Mandelson.