British Prime Minister Keir Starmer leaves Downing Street in London, England, on February 2, 2026.
Alicia Abodunde | Getty Images News | Getty Images
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s chief of staff resigned on Sunday following the uproar over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as British ambassador to the US despite his links to Jeffrey Epstein.
Morgan McSweeney said she was responsible for advising Mr Starmer to appoint Mr Mandelson, 72, to Britain’s most important diplomatic post in 2024.
“The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was the wrong one. He undermined faith in our party, our country and politics itself,” Mr McSweeney said in a statement. “When asked, I advised the Prime Minister to make that appointment and I take full responsibility for that advice.”
Mr Starmer is facing a political storm and questions about his judgment following newly released documents suggesting Mr Mandelson, part of the vast Epstein files released in the US, sent market-sensitive information to the convicted sex offender while he was the British government’s business secretary during the 2008 financial crisis.
Starmer’s government has promised to release its own emails and other documents relating to Mr Mandelson’s appointment, saying they will show Mr Mandelson misled officials.
The prime minister apologized this week for “believing Mr Mandelson’s lies”.
He acknowledged that when Mandelson was selected as top diplomat in 2024, the review revealed that Mandelson’s friendship with Epstein continued even after Epstein’s conviction in 2008. But Mr Starmer insisted that at the time “no one knew the depths of darkness” in the relationship.
Many MPs said Mr Starmer was ultimately responsible for the scandal.
Opposition Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said: “Keir Starmer must take responsibility for his terrible decisions.”
Mandelson, a former cabinet minister, ambassador and elder statesman of the ruling Labor Party, has not been arrested or charged.
The Metropolitan Police searched Mr Mandelson’s London home and another property linked to him on Friday. Police said the investigation is complex and will require “a significant amount of additional evidence collection and analysis.”
The British police investigation focuses on potential misconduct in public office, and Mandelson has not been charged with any sexual offences.
Mr Starmer had removed Mr Mandelson from his ambassadorship in September over previous revelations about his relationship with Mr Epstein. But critics say recent emails released by the US Department of Justice have raised serious concerns about Starmer’s sentence. They argue he should have known better than to appoint Mandelson in the first place.
The new revelations include documents suggesting Mr Mandelson shared classified government information with Mr Epstein after the 2008 global financial crisis. They also include records of payments totaling $75,000 from Mr. Epstein to accounts connected to Mr. Mandelson and her husband, Reinaldo Avila da Silva, in 2003 and 2004.
Apart from his involvement with Epstein, Mandelson has twice had to resign from senior government positions over financial and ethics scandals.
Mr Starmer has faced growing pressure over the past week to sack Mr McSweeney, who is seen as a key adviser to Downing Street and a close ally of Mr Mandelson.
Mr Starmer on Sunday credited Mr McSweeney with being central to Labour’s recent election campaign and landslide victory in 2004. His statement did not mention the Mandelson scandal.
