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Labour backbenchers are at boiling point with the Prime Minister and his chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, over the Mandelson affair. On Thursday morning, Keir Starmer apologised to Epstein’s victims. He said: “I am sorry – sorry for what was done to you, sorry that so many people with power failed, sorry for having believed Mandelson’s lies and appointed him, and sorry that even now you’re forced to watch this story unfold in public once again.” But in a Q&A following the session, Starmer added that he had no reason to believe that Mandelson was lying when he was offered the role. This has not gone down well with some on the Labour backbenches.

While many are voicing their concerns privately, some have begun to go public, speaking to the media, the Commons or putting out statements on social media. Here is the New Statesman’s rolling tracker of MPs who have publicly criticised the PM: 

Paula Barker

Speaking to the Today programme on Thursday morning the Labour MP for Liverpool Wavertree said she was “deeply ashamed” of the government’s original amendment to the Conservative Party’s humble address. She told the programme that the Prime Minister has shown that his judgement is questionable, and added that he has a long way to go in building trust with MPs. However, Barker stopped short of calling for Starmer’s departure: “Is there anyone of my colleagues who I would want to see replace him? Genuinely, not even without saying names, there’s nobody who I would be prepared to back at this stage.”

Simon Opher 

In a statement released on Thursday afternoon, the Labour MP for Stroud said “once again the poor decision-making of those around the Prime Minister is dominating the news agenda.” He added: “The government is rightly being held to account for re-introducing someone to high public office who should never have been there…  we can, and must, be better than this.” When asked by the New Statesman what he thought should happen next, Opher said: “McSweeney needs to go.”

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Rachael Maskell

Speaking to ITV on Thursday, Maskell said revelations about Starmer’s knowledge of Mandelson’s continued association with Jeffrey Epstein have called his judgement into question. The Labour MP for York Central later told the New Statesman that she thinks Morgan McSweeney’s position is now “untenable” owing to his close association with Mandelson. (As the New Statesman revealed earlier this week, it was McSweeney who pushed for Mandelson to be appointed US Ambassador).  

Jo White

White, the MP for Bassetlaw – and the chair of the Labour Red Wall Group – said on X: “The only way through this is an ethical reset at the heart of government. We need a cleansing, a wiping away of patronage, favours and friends first traditions. We came into power with this ambition and too quickly got waylaid.”

Richard Burgon 

In a speech in Parliament on Wednesday, during the debate on the Conservative Party’s humble address, Burgon pointed out that Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein was known long before his appointment as ambassador to the US. “How on earth did Mandelson end up being appointed by the prime minister as ambassador to the US?”. Burgon later said in a post on X: “A culture of nasty factionalism in the Labour Party meant a blind eye was turned and he was promoted regardless.” 

This list will be updated.

[Further reading: Labour MPs are turning on Starmer over the Mandelson scandal]

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