What to know about Mandelson’s link to Jeffrey Epsteinpublished at 13:04 British Summer Time
13:04 BST
Image source, United States District Court Southern District of New YorkImage caption,
Peter Mandelson with Jeffrey Epstein on the island of St Barts in 2006
Mandelson was brought up a lot in the House of Commons today – here’s a quick explainer about the US ambassador’s past relationship with disgraced financier and convicted paedophile Jeffery Epstein.
On Tuesday, US lawmakers released a trove of documents related to Epstein, who died in prison in 2019.
Among the documents was a letter from Mandelson, in which he referred to Epstein as his “best pal”.
The message continues that Epstein was known for “taking you by surprise… in one of his glorious homes he likes to share with his friends (yum yum)”, and features the label from a single malt whiskey, alongside a picture of a tropical island.
Since the letter emerged, Mandelson has called it “embarrassing” and said it was written more than “20 years ago”.
He added that he regrets “very deeply” carrying on his association with Epstein “longer than I should have done” because he “fell for his lies”.
More “embarrassing” correspondence could come out, Mandelson says.
As details emerge, Starmer is facing questions about what he knew of the relationship, and whether Mandelson is fit for his role.