Who is Peter Mandelson and what do we know about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein ?

independent.co.uk · Feb 24, 2026 · Collected from GDELT

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Peter Mandelson has been arrested after allegations he leaked Downing Street emails to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epsteinwhile he was serving in Gordon Brown’s cabinet as business secretary. The Labour peer, who was sacked as British ambassador to the US and stepped down from the House of Lords, was arrested on Monday afternoon on suspicion of misconduct in public office, according to the Metropolitan Police.It comes after, earlier in February, Lord Mandelson announced he was resigning from his membership of the Labour Party, stating that he does not want to cause "further embarrassment", after latest revelations about his ties to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein surfaced.The so-called Epstein files appeared to show that the financier paid for an osteopathy course for Lord Mandelson’s husband, Reinaldo Avila Da Silva, in 2009, at the time the government was dealing with the financial crisis. Sir Keir Starmer has faced growing scrutiny over his decision to appoint Lord Mandelson as US ambassador including a backlash from his own back benches, with his former deputy Angela Rayner among those pushing for parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee to decide what documents could be released into the public domain.Tory leader Kemi Badenoch demanded Downing Street explain the vetting process as she claimed concerns were “waved away” so the prime minister could make “a political appointment of a man who is a close friend of a convicted paedophile”.Lord Mandelson resigned from his membership of the Labour Party as he does not wish to ’cause further embarrassment’ over his links to Jeffrey Epstein (PA Wire)In a letter to Labour's general secretary, Lord Mandelson said: “I have been further linked this weekend to the understandable furore surrounding Jeffrey Epstein and I feel regretful and sorry about this.“Allegations which I believe to be false that he made financial payments to me 20 years ago, and of which I have no record or recollection, need investigating by me.”But how did Lord Mandelson rise from political fixer to the prime minister’s point man in the US? And what do we know about his relationship with Epstein?Lord Mandelson appeared to describe Jeffrey Epstein as his ‘best pal’ (House Oversight Committee)Peter Mandelson’s careerThe former Labour grandee was born into Labour politics. Lord Mandelson is the grandson of former Labour home and foreign secretary Herbert Morrison. Aged just 12, he was invited to Downing Street by his neighbours, then prime minister Harold Wilson and his wife Mary.The young Peter is said to have been “dazzled” at the time by the opportunity to sit in the prime minister’s chair. But Lord Mandelson’s work as a political fixer for the party has seen him go on to spend five decades at the heart of Labour politics.Lord Mandelson earned the nickname the ‘Prince of Darkness’ (PA)His first taste of Labour politics was his 1979 election to Lambeth Borough Council, famously where Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney also cut his teeth working for now environment secretary Steve Reed.However, the hard left council was led by a man dubbed “Red Ted”, and so the young Peter Mandelson stood down just three years later, disillusioned with Labour politics.After a stint in TV, he was appointed by former Labour leader Neil Kinnock as the party’s director of communications, where his status as a political heavyweight began to take shape.Despite defeat in the 1987 general election, before Margaret Thatcher’s third term in Downing Street, Labour picked up tens of seats and its media operation won praise.His return to government was surrounded by controversy (PA)He was selected as Labour’s candidate for the safe seat of Hartlepool in 1990, winning the seat at the 1992 general election, the last before the rise of Sir Tony Blair and New Labour.The party was on course to take power from a tired Tory Party led by Sir John Major before the unexpected death of then Labour leader John Smith.Lord Mandelson then found himself at the heart of a feud which would dominate British politics, Blair v Brown, after he backed Sir Tony for the leadership.As a reward for his support, he was made director of Labour’s landslide 1997 general election campaign and was then handed a role in government.He was later handed responsibility for trade and industry.Peter Mandelson, right, with John Prescott, centre, and Neil Kinnock at London’s Festival Hall after Labour’s election victory in 1997 (PA Archive)After briefly returning to the cabinet, Lord Mandelson had his eyes on Europe and took a job in 2004 as Britain’s European commissioner for trade - a role which may cause friction with EU-hating Mr Trump’s administration.But it was four years later Lord Mandelson’s status as a Labour grandee would finally be sealed. In a controversial move, Mr Brown sought to shore up his government by bringing the former spin doctor back to UK politics by handing him a peerage and a role as business secretary.Lord Mandelson became the first political appointee to the US ambassador role for almost 50 years.He has faced scrutiny over his roles with lobbying firm Global Counsel, his links with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein and his views on China, Europe and globalism in a time of the rise of America First.In September 2025, Sir Keir Starmer sacked Lord Mandelson as the US ambassador following growing pressure over his ties to Epstein.Peter Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey EpsteinOver the weekend, further links came to light after the tranche of newly released documents suggested that Epstein had made payments of up to $75,000 (£55,000) to Lord Mandelson over a period between 2003 and 2004.Emails also appeared to show that the convicted sex offender had sent £10,000 to his husband Reinaldo Avila da Silva to fund an osteopathy course and other related expenses in September 2009. The latest revelations follows a shock report by JPMorgan Chase last year that revealed the “particularly close relationship” between Lord Mandelson and Epstein.The dossier showed the senior political figure’s ties to the late paedophile – who was close enough to the former Labour cabinet minister to call him “Petie”.The report also suggested that Lord Mandelson stayed at Epstein’s New York home in June 2009 – when he was still Mr Brown’s business secretary and the financier was serving 18 months in prison for soliciting prostitution from a minor.Pictures of the pair together have repeatedly resurfaced, with photos being circulated on social media when it emerged he would be appointed US ambassador.Lord Mandelson’s apparent birthday letter to Epstein (House Committee on Oversight and Reform)Lord Mandelson’s apparent contribution to the birthday book, released by a Congressional committee, took the form of a poem to the financier. “Once upon a time, an intelligent, sharp-witted man they call ‘mysterious’ parachuted into my life,” it opened.The pictures included alongside the note included a shot of Lord Mandelson on a balcony in a pair of swimming trunks shot from behind, with his hands on his hips. Lord Mandelson said his relationship with Epstein is a media ‘obsession’ (House Committee on Oversight and Reform)Lord Mandelson’s note appeared to reference “interesting” friends he had been left to entertain by Epstein.“But wherever he is in the world, he remains my best pal,” it concluded. Lord Mandelson appeared to add: “Happy birthday, Jeffrey, we love you!!”There is no suggestion Lord Mandelson, who was friends with Epstein’s former lover Ghislaine Maxwell, had any knowledge of the paedophile’s wrongdoing.Lord Mandelson’s spokesman had said he “very much regrets” the connection with Epstein while allies have said the pair met on no more than five or six occasions. In January, Lord Mandelson apologised to the victims of Epstein for remaining friends with the paedophile financier after his conviction. “I was wrong to believe him following his conviction and to continue my association with him afterwards. I apologise unequivocally for doing so to the women and girls who suffered,” he said in a statement.