Closing summary
That’s all from me, Tom Ambrose, and the UK politics blog for today. Thanks for following along.
Here is a round-up of the day’s main news lines:
Police are searching two properties connected to Peter Mandelson as part of an investigation into claims that he passed market-sensitive information to Jeffrey Epstein. A Metropolitan police statement, which did not name Mandelson, said searches were taking place in Camden, north London, and Wiltshire. Mandelson has been living in a rented property in Wiltshire since being sacked as ambassador to the US over his links to the late convicted child sex offender.
Keir Starmer is facing renewed calls to sack his most senior adviser as Downing Street braces 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 total number of government documents related to Peter Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador could be close to 100,000, the BBC reported without citing a source for the information. The Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) wrote to Keir Starmer yesterday to set out its expectations ahead of the release of the Mandelson documents.
While Keir Starmer believes the files will prove Mandelson lied during his vetting, the publication of communications with ministers and senior officials has the potential to prove embarrassing for the government. Publication of the full tranche of documents could take some time, as parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) must review any items that the government wishes to withhold for national security reasons.
A former No 10 aide has quit as chief executive of the influential lobbying firm he co-founded with Peter Mandelson following revelations from the Jeffrey Epstein files. Ben Wegg-Prosser stepped down on Friday as the head of Global Counsel after emails revealed the extent to which he and Mandselson had involved the convicted child sex offender when they were setting up the company in 2010.
Labour MP Neil Duncan-Jordan has said Keir Starmer should resign as prime minister and called for a “renewal” of the party. “We can’t just keep going on like this - lurching from one crisis to the next,” the MP for Poole told BBC News.
But Home Office minister Mike Tapp blamed the vetting process for the reason Peter Mandelson was able to be appointed US ambassador. Defending the prime minister, Tapp told Sky News that Keir Starmer “wasn’t the vetting officer” and said that he had acted quickly.
There will be “soul-searching” in Labour this weekend after a bruising week for the party, an MSP has said, as she called for “accountability” over the decision hire Peter Mandelson. Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland, Labour MSP Monica Lennon - a leadership contender in 2021 - said just mentioning Mandelson’s name “makes my skin crawl”, accusing him of abusing his position and public trust.
More than 50 Labour MPs have urged the government to reconsider its decision not to pay compensation to so-called Waspi women in the latest sign of backbench unrest. They were among 92 parliamentarians who signed a letter co-ordinated by Labour MP Rebecca Long-Bailey saying it was the “wrong decision” not to award compensation to women over pension age changes, PA reports.
A thinktank previously run by a Labour minister and the prime minister’s chief of staff is alleged to have paid a PR firm to investigate journalists who were looking into its funding. Labour Together, once run by Morgan McSweeney and then by Josh Simons, now a Cabinet Office minister, hired APCO Worldwide to investigate journalists from the Guardian, the Sunday Times and other outlets and to identify their sources, according to claims in the Substack publication Democracy for Sale.
Most of England’s smart motorway schemes have proved poor or very poor value for money, according to assessments by the government agency that built them. Official evaluations from National Highways, some of which had been held back by the Department for Transport (DfT) since completion in 2023, showed that a slew of big projects to convert the hard shoulder on the M1, M4, M6 and M25 were rated as “poor” or “very poor” value.
Nearly 60,000 unauthorised migrants and convicted criminals have been removed or deported from the UK since Labour took office, the Home Office has said. The announcement came amid claims that the government was promoting “harmful stereotypes” by equating migration with criminality.
The Scottish government has announced plans for a housing grant scheme in rural areas, PA reported. First minister John Swinney set out the Rural and Island Housing Grant Scheme at the National Farmers Union Scotland conference on Friday.
A man who left the London house, and got into a car, declined to comment, including on anything happening inside the property.
Here are some more photos of police appearing to search the address near Regent’s Park in London:
