Crisis for Starmer as No. 10 denies knowing Mandelson failed security clearance – POLITICO

LONDON — Keir Starmer’s government was thrown into fresh turmoil Thursday after it emerged Peter Mandelson had failed security vetting — but was appointed as U.K. ambassador to the U.S. anyway.

Mandelson — a veteran Labour politician who was later sacked from the top diplomatic role over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — was given the green light to take up the Washington post by Foreign Office officials against the advice of the government’s screening agency, United Kingdom Security Vetting.

“Neither the Prime Minister, nor any Government Minister, was aware that Peter Mandelson was granted Developed Vetting against the advice of UK Security Vetting until earlier this week,” a U.K. government spokesperson said Thursday after the Guardian newspaper first reported the vetting failure.