By Elizabeth Piper and Sarah Young
LONDON, Feb 2 (Reuters) – Britain’s former U.S. ambassador, Peter Mandelson, received money from Jeffrey Epstein and leaked a confidential government briefing to him, newly released files appeared to show, triggering calls on Monday for the police to investigate.
Late on Sunday, Mandelson left the Labour Party to prevent “further embarrassment”, after he was fired from his envoy role last year after revelations about his connections to the late convicted sex offender.
He said he had no recollection of any payments after the files appeared to show he had received donations of $25,000 from Epstein. The Financial Times said he received $75,000 in total.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Mandelson should be removed from parliament’s upper chamber.
MANDELSON COULD FACE FURTHER INVESTIGATIONS
Among the latest batch of documents released by the U.S. Justice Department, an email suggested Mandelson had shared a confidential government briefing with the financier.
The memo from an adviser to then-prime minister Gordon Brown, which was copied to Mandelson and others, discussed economic policy, including a recommendation that they should consider the sale of non-strategic assets to bring down debt.
Mandelson forwarded the email to Epstein saying “interesting note that’s gone to the PM”, with Epstein replying: “What saleable assets?”
Opposition politicians called on the police to investigate whether Mandelson, a minister in Labour’s 1997-2010 governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, had breached confidentiality rules.
Britain’s Metropolitan Police did not respond to a Reuters request asking whether they were considering opening an investigation.
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 modernise disciplinary procedures in the House to allow for the easier removal of Lords who have brought the House into disrepute,” the spokesperson said, adding that Starmer had instructed the cabinet secretary to review all available information regarding Mandelson’s contacts with Epstein.
REMOVING MANDELSON WOULD REQUIRE LEGISLATION
Mandelson could choose to retire from the House of Lords but ousting him would require the government to pass 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, who was photographed in his underwear in the new Epstein files, played a central role in Labour’s electoral success as 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 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 resignation in 2001 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.
(Writing by William Schomberg and Sarah Young, additional reporting by Sarah Young and Sam Tabahriti; editing by Chris Reese, Mark Heinrich and Ros Russell)
Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Reuters news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.