Peter Mandelson to step down from House of Lords after Epstein controversy
Lord Peter Mandelson is resigning from the House of Lords after a series of revelations over his relationship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said yesterday he was exploring options for forcing Mandelson, a top figure in the Labour party for 40 years, out of the upper chamber.
But the Lord Speaker announced this afternoon the former business secretary would be stepping down voluntarily, with the resignation effective from tomorrow.
It is understood he will retain the title of Lord, as there is no way to formally remove it.
The news comes amid a rapidly spiralling controversy over emails Mandelson exchanged with Epstein while he was serving in the Cabinet, which appear to divulge market-sensitive information.
On Monday, the Metropolitan Police confirmed they have received ‘a number of reports relating to alleged misconduct in a public office’ since the files were released, though they did not identify Mandelson as a target.
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A Downing Street spokesperson confirmed today that material had been passed over to the police by the Cabinet Office.
Starmer told a meeting of his Cabinet today he had ‘made it clear the government would cooperate with the police in any inquiries they carried out’.
According to an official readout of the meeting, the PM said Mandelson had ‘let his country down’ and described his claims that he could not recall receiving large amounts of money from Epstein as ‘gobsmacking’.
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