Keir Starmer was facing renewed calls to sack his most senior adviser on Friday as Downing Street braced itself for another round of leadership speculation when the files relating to Peter Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador are published.
The Labour MP for Stroud, Simon Opher, added his voice to those calling for the departure of Starmer’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, who was instrumental in the decision to appoint Mandelson despite concerns about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
The former Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman said the prime minister had looked “weak, naive and gullible” after he apologised for having put Mandelson into such a high-profile and sensitive role.
With ministers being asked to hand over details of their communications with Mandelson, officials say they expect the files to be published within days, and Labour MPs say the release could renew pressure on the prime minister to resign.
Opher told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Friday: “Keir Starmer needs to change his advisers in No 10. I think he’s been badly advised, and he’s been really let down, particularly on this decision.
“I know in politics we really rely on people to cover our backs, our advisers, and I think they patently haven’t done this with Peter Mandelson. So we need a bit of a clearout at No 10.”
Asked whether that meant sacking McSweeney, Opher replied: “I think so, yes. If my chief of staff had done this I think he would be looking for another job to be honest.”
Downing Street said on Thursday that McSweeney retained the prime minister’s confidence.
Harman told Sky’s Electoral Dysfunction podcast Starmer “has got to stop blaming Mandelson and saying ‘he lied to me’.
“Because actually he should never have been considering him in the first place. And to say ‘he lied to me’ makes it look weak and naive and gullible. So it’s just completely the wrong thing.”
Starmer has been under pressure for several days after new details emerged from the Epstein files in the US about the closeness between Mandelson and the late child sex offender.
The revelations include documents suggesting Epstein gave Mandelson $75,000 (£55,000) – which Mandelson has said he cannot remember – and that Mandelson shared sensitive inside information with Epstein when he was working at the heart of Gordon Brown’s government.
The prime minister attempted to quell MPs’ anger over Mandelson’s appointment on Thursday, giving a lengthy apology to Epstein’s victims.
But while he apologised for believing the former ambassador’s “lies”, he did not apologise for giving him the job even though it was known at the time that Mandelson had continued his relationship with Epstein even after the latter had been convicted of trafficking a child for sex.
The immigration minister, Mike Tapp, said on Friday that Starmer should continue as prime minister. He told Sky News: “I believe if we stick with Keir Starmer, which we will, then that corner will turn faster and people will start to feel it.
“But I completely understand the anger and the distress at what’s happened with Peter Mandelson’s appointment. I completely agree with that, and that’s why I’m really pleased to see a genuine, genuine apology from Keir Starmer.”
Ministers are preparing to hand over electronic communications they had with Mandelson after Starmer agreed to release documents related to his appointment.
No 10 said on Thursday that it had begun talks with parliament’s intelligence and security committee over releasing the documents, though the committee denied this.
Downing Street believes the files will relieve pressure on Starmer by showing the extent to which Mandelson deceived them during the pre-appointment process. Some Labour MPs say they are waiting to see what the documents say before deciding whether to call for Starmer to resign.