Prime Minister Keir Starmer has denied that Downing Street pressured the former Foreign Office permanent secretary to override security concerns about Peter Mandelson’s appointment as UK ambassador to the United States.
Starmer’s denial comes after Olly Robbins, who was sacked as the top civil servant at the Foreign Office on 16 April 2026, told the Guardian that No 10 had a “very, very strong expectation” that Mandelson needed to be in post quickly. The BBC reported that Robbins said Downing Street took a “dismissive” approach to the vetting process.
In a live politics session covered by The Guardian, Starmer said Robbins’s evidence confirmed he personally faced no pressure to approve the vetting decision. He stated that Robbins was clear the decisions he took were independent of any pressure and that no one told him vetting could be ignored.
Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative Party leader, challenged Starmer’s account, saying he was relying on advice received after Mandelson was sacked as ambassador, not before the appointment. She argued the appointment was already a done deal and questioned why due process was not followed, given Robbins’s claim that the Prime Minister’s team showed a dismissive approach to vetting.
The controversy stems from events beginning with Mandelson’s appointment announcement on 20 December 2024. He formally took up the role on 10 February 2025 after completing security vetting. Mandelson was sacked as ambassador on 11 September 2025 following the release of US Department of Justice emails revealing novel details about his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
On 11 March 2026, government documents were released showing details of Mandelson’s initial appointment, which one senior adviser described as “weirdly rushed”. The Guardian’s report on 16 April 2026 revealed that the Foreign Office had gone against recommendations from vetting officials who advised denying Mandelson security clearance.
The same day, Olly Robbins was sacked as permanent secretary at the Foreign Office. Starmer said he had not been told about the vetting recommendation, describing this as a “deliberate decision”. Robbins countered that there was strong expectation from No 10 for Mandelson to be in post quickly.
The Telegraph’s website was inaccessible due to security systems detecting unusual activity, preventing access to any additional reporting from that source on the matter.
What did Olly Robbins say about pressure from Downing Street?
Robbins said Downing Street took a “dismissive” approach to the vetting process and that there was “a very, very strong expectation” from No 10 that Mandelson “needed to be in post” as quickly as possible.
When did Lord Mandelson formally take up his role as UK ambassador to the US?
Lord Mandelson formally took up the role on 10 February 2025, following the completion of the security vetting process.
Why was Peter Mandelson sacked as ambassador?
He was sacked on 11 September 2025 after emails released by the US Department of Justice revealed new information about the extent of his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.