From Prince of Darkness to deputy prime minister to Your Excellency. It is fair to say that the latest incarnation of the politician with nine lives is not a universally acclaimed appointment. In conversation with a cabinet minister a couple of weeks ago, I brought up the idea of Peter Mandelson becoming the UK’s man in Washington. The minister arched a sceptical eyebrow before saying: “We already have a very good ambassador there.”
There were considerable qualms within government about giving such a pivotal role to one of the most controversial figures in British politics and quite a lot of support for extending the term of the well-regarded Dame Karen Pierce. Sir Keir Starmer was ultimately persuaded that it will take more than the skills of a career diplomat to handle relations with the US during a second Trump term which everyone expects to be a noisy and perilous ride. “I think it is a super smart appointment,” remarks one government loyalist. “My instinct is that Trump respects serious operators and we all know what an operator Peter is.” A friend of Lord Mandelson reports: “He knows what his job is going to be. It is to be the voice of Britain in the president’s ear.” The calculation at Number 10 is that Donald Trump, a man bored by conventional diplomatic types, will be sufficiently intrigued by a figure as vivid as Lord M to pay him attention.
