British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was warned that Peter Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein posed a “general reputational risk” ahead of his appointment as Britain’s ambassador to the United States, according to a trove of files released Wednesday by the British government.

In a due diligence report provided to Starmer by his vetting team in December 2024, officials listed what was publicly known about the veteran Labour politician’s ties to the disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Epstein.

“After Epstein was first convicted of procuring an underage girl in 2008, their relationship continued across 2009-2011, beginning when Lord Mandelson was Business Minister and continuing after the end of the Labour government. Mandelson reportedly stayed in Epstein’s House while he was in jail in June 2009,” the report said.

Starmer has faced fierce questioning about his judgment in appointing Mandelson as ambassador last year. Although Mandelson’s ties to Epstein had for years been a matter of the public record, files released by the US Department of Justice provided evidence about the depth and extent of his relationship to the financier, which continued after Epstein’s 2008 conviction.

The prime minister fired Mandelson in September following an earlier DOJ release of Epstein files. Another tranche of files released in January sparked further public outrage, prompting Britain’s Labour government to agree to spell out what it knew about Mandelson’s ties to Epstein at the time of his appointment.

The vetting documents cited a 2019 report commissioned by JPMorgan, which cited Epstein’s personal records showing that his relationship with Mandelson began in 2002 and continued throughout the 2000s.

“To note – general reputational risk,” officials wrote in the report provided to Starmer

The documents also showed that Jonathan Powell, Starmer’s national security adviser, believed that Mandelson’s appointment had been “unusual.” In a call with Starmer’s lawyer after Mandelson was fired as ambassador, Powell said he had raised concerns about Mandelson’s “reputation” to a key aide to the prime minister, and said he found the appointment process “weirdly rushed.”

Darren Jones, a senior cabinet minister, told lawmakers in Parliament Wednesday that the files revealed “that the due diligence process fell short of what is required.”

Another document in the files showed that Mandelson’s lawyers had requested that he be paid the remainder of his four-year contract, which would have amounted to £547,201 (about $730,000). In the end, he received £75,000 (about $100,000).

British police arrested Mandelson last month on suspicion of misconduct in public office after documents released by the DOJ showed that he appeared to leak sensitive British government data to Epstein. He was released after questioning but remains under investigation. Mandelson has denied any criminal wrongdoing and has previously said he feels “utterly awful” about his friendship with Epstein and “the plight of his victims.” (BBC News)