PM calls for ex-envoy Mandelson to leave U.K.’s House of Lords over Epstein links

Britain's Ambassador to the United States, Peter Mandelson, speaks during a reception at the ambassador's residence on Feb. 26, 2025 in Washington. (Carl Court/Pool Photo via AP, File)

LONDON -- Prime Minister Keir Starmer called on Monday for Britain’s former ambassador to the U.S., Peter ‍Mandelson, to be removed from parliament’s upper chamber after new reports emerged of his ties with the late U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Mandelson, a prominent figure in Starmer’s Labour Party for decades, was fired from his envoy role last year after previous revelations about his connections to Epstein.

Late on Sunday the former minister under Labour’s 1997-2007 prime minister Tony Blair quit the centre-left party as well after more documents were released, saying he did not wish to cause “further embarrassment.”

The newly released documents from the U.S. Justice Department showed Mandelson pictured in his underwear, an image that circulated ⁠widely in British media on Monday. The Financial Times said the files also showed that accounts connected to Mandelson ‍had received US$75,000 from Epstein, prompting opposition politicians to call for a full investigation.

‘Understandable furor,’ Mandelson says

Mandelson said in a letter to the Labour Party that he was sorry to be linked once again to the “understandable furore surrounding Jeffrey Epstein.”

But he said he believed that allegations about financial payments to him by Epstein were false and he would investigate.

Starmer’s spokesperson said on Monday Mandelson should not be a member of the House of Lords, parliament’s upper chamber that revises legislation, but added that the ​prime minister did not have the power to remove him.

“He (Starmer) is calling on those in the Lords to work with the government to modernize disciplinary procedures in the House to allow for the easier removal of Lords who have brought the House into disrepute,” the spokesperson said, adding Starmer had instructed the cabinet secretary to review all available information ⁠regarding Mandelson’s contacts with Epstein.

Many lawmakers said Starmer should go further and launch an official inquiry into allegations over financial payments.

“We need a full Cabinet Office investigation into how Mandelson and his husband took money from the pedophile Jeffrey Epstein while he was a Labour minister, and why Mandelson was appointed ambassador in the first place,” Kemi Badenoch, the leader of Britain’s opposition Conservative ⁠Party, said on X.

Removing Mandelson would require legislation

Mandelson could choose to retire from the House of Lords but ousting him ‌would require the government to propose and pass a piece of ‌legislation. He is currently on a leave of absence.

A spokesperson for the Labour Party said on Monday it was right that he had quit the party and added that disciplinary action had already been underway prior to the resignation.

During the late 1990s, Mandelson played ⁠a central role in Labour’s electoral success as Tony Blair became prime minister.

Mandelson, also a former European Union trade commissioner, came under scrutiny last year when U.S. lawmakers released documents including a letter in which he called Epstein “my best pal,” leading to his dismissal as Britain’s ambassador.

Mandelson also had a turbulent earlier career in domestic politics. In 1998, he quit as trade minister over a loan ‌he received from a fellow minister to buy a ‍house following questions over conflict of interest.

A second stint in the cabinet also ended in a resignation in 2001 when he was forced out over his alleged involvement in a passport scandal involving an Indian billionaire. He was later cleared of acting improperly.

Separately, Starmer said on Saturday that Britain’s former prince Andrew should testify before a U.S. congressional committee following new ‍revelations about his links to Epstein.

By William Schomberg and Elizabeth ‍Piper

(Writing by William Schomberg ‌and Sarah Young, additional reporting by Sarah Young and Sam Tabahriti; editing by Chris Reese and Mark Heinrich)