Keir Starmer faces a Commons vote on the vetting process surrounding Peter Mandelson’s diplomatic appointment as key witnesses prepare to testify before MPs. The timing has intensified political tensions ahead of next week’s elections across Britain. While the government has characterized the inquiry as politically motivated, the testimony from former Foreign Office chief Philip Barton … Read more
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 … Read more
Sir Olly Robbins told MPs he did not see the vetting file on Peter Mandelson produced by UK Security Vetting, describing it as existing in a “hermetically sealed box”. He said he received an oral briefing on 29 January 2025, the day after UKSV submitted its recommendation, in which he was told Mandelson was considered … Read more