Good morning, and welcome to my last regular First Edition – for the time being. From Monday, I am moving to a stint writing our sister US briefing, First Thing, and I will also be part of our World Cup coverage. Plus, of course, I will still be setting the questions on the Thursday news quiz, which celebrates its 250th edition next week.
Talking of questions, one that’s been occupying the nation for some time is this: does Keir Starmer regret ever hearing the name Peter Mandelson, let alone appointing him as ambassador to the US? Yesterday the Guardian exclusively published important new details about the concerns flagged by security officials when the disgraced peer and New Labour architect was granted security clearance against the advice of the government’s vetting agency.
