8 Eyebrow-Raising Takeaways From The Peter Mandelson Files And His Personal Messages

The second tranche of government documents on the disgraced peer was expected to hugely embarrass ministers.

Political Correspondent

The government has released the highly-anticipated second tranche of internal files on Peter Mandelson and his brief appointment as ambassador to the US.

The ex-Labour peer fell from grace last September after the depth of his friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein was revealed.

But questions remain around why he was appointed in the first place and what kind of influence he had with ministers.

The Conservatives forced the Cabinet Office to release all documents related to the controversial hire earlier this year via a parliamentary procedure called a “Humble Address”.

The first tranche of documents showed that Mandelson had got the top job against recommendations from security officials.

Most ministers and civil servants have handed over their private exchanges with the former Washington attache for the second batch of documents.

Some of the files have been redacted amid concerns about international security and the ongoing Metropolitan Police probe into Mandelson’s conduct in public office.

The ex-Labour peer has not been charged and insists he is not guilty of any wrongdoing.

Deciding to appoint Mandelson into the top diplomatic post has cast a huge shadow over Keir Starmer’s premiership.

He has repeatedly accused Mandelson of creating a “litany of deceit” around his ties to Epstein, but his critics continue to lambast him over it.

Here’s a look at the most........

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