A recap of a dramatic day in Westminsterpublished at 10:16 GMT
10:16 GMT
Rachel Flynn
Live reporter
Ministers pledge to release Mandelson appointment documents – but with caveats
On Wednesday, the Conservatives put forward a motion in Parliament demanding the government release all documents relating to Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting told the BBC the documents would be published with “maximum transparency”, but with exemptions for anything which could damage national security or diplomatic relations.
Gasps as Badenoch and Starmer spar at PMQs
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch pushed the prime minister on whether he was aware Mandelson had continued his friendship with Epstein after his conviction, and whether it came up during vetting.
“Yes, it did,” Starmer said to audible gasps in the Commons. Watch the moment:
Media caption,
Watch: ’Did the official security vetting mention Epstein and Mandelson’s relationship?’
The government’s position unravels
Later, a dramatic debate in the Commons ended with MPs backing proposals to release the Mandelson documents without a vote.
Some MPs were furious that some documents might be withheld on national security grounds, with former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner one of several Labour MPs who intervened.
In a last-minute concession, the government agreed that any sensitive documents deemed a risk to national security should be referred to Parliament’s cross-party Intelligence and Security Committee.
As our chief political correspondent Henry Zeffman writes, the mood among Labour MPs is “very dark”.