Robbins Provides Evidence to Foreign Affairs Committee
The Foreign Affairs Committee has released a letter received from Olly Robbins. According to , Robbins states in the letter that he cannot discuss certain matters related to his dismissal as he is seeking legal advice. This appears to confirm that he is pursuing an unfair dismissal claim.
The committee hearing is about to commence, with a live feed available at the top of this blog; refreshing the page may be necessary to view it.
Steven Swinford and Oliver Wright report that Robbins will inform the committee that he never reviewed the full developed vetting report on Peter Mandelson. They state:
"The Times has been told that Robbins will use an appearance before the foreign affairs select committee on Tuesday to reveal that he did not see the formal recommendation by UK Security Vetting (UKSV), the body that vets public appointments, stating that Mandelson should not be given clearance.
He was given a verbal briefing by the Foreign Office’s security team and told that UKSV considered Mandelson’s case to be ‘borderline’, although if the decision was UKSV’s, it was likely to oppose giving him clearance. Robbins assessed the ‘outstanding risks’ and concluded that they could be mitigated.
Robbins is expected to highlight the ‘prevailing atmosphere’ at the time of the appointment, including the fact that Starmer chose to press ahead with announcing Mandelson as ambassador to the United States before security vetting had been conducted."
Ed Miliband Expresses Doubts on Mandelson Appointment
Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary, stated in a interview that he always believed the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US would "blow up." Miliband also mentioned that David Lammy, the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary at the time, shared similar concerns.
However, Miliband did not voice his concerns to Starmer, partly due to the known strained relationship between himself and Mandelson. They had conflicts during their tenure as cabinet ministers under Gordon Brown, and later, Miliband marginalized Mandelson during his leadership of the Labour Party, which led to Mandelson criticizing Miliband's leadership strategy.
"You’re saying [Mandelson] should never have been appointed [as US ambassador] and I agree with you …
I steered well clear of Peter Mandelson when I became Labour leader in 2010."
When asked about his reaction to the announcement of Mandelson's appointment, Miliband said:
"That it could blow up, that it could go wrong.
I had a conversation with David Lammy about it before the appointment, and I said I was worried about it … I think he was worried about it too."
He confirmed he did not discuss these concerns with Starmer:
"Maybe I wasn’t the person that people would necessarily ask, I think people knew my view on Peter Mandelson."
Regarding whether Starmer should resign over the appointment, Miliband responded:
"You’re asking me should Keir Starmer resign over the appointment of Lord Mandelson? And I’m saying to you, no, I don’t think he should.
Because I think if every time a prime minister made a mistake they resigned, we would shuttle through prime ministers like nobody’s business.
I think on big judgments for this country, the biggest judgment of all, whether to join the war against Iran, Keir Starmer made a big and fundamental correct judgment."
Labour MP Sarah Champion Comments on Party Mood
Sarah Champion, Labour MP and chair of the International Development Committee, spoke on the Today programme about the mood within the Labour Party following the crisis. She acknowledged that Keir Starmer is unpopular with voters, but not due to the Mandelson appointment. She said:
"I’ll be honest with you, people don’t like Keir on the door but it’s not over this Mandelson thing. They don’t like him personally.
There’s been a fantastic campaign by opposition parties to undermine him …
I think that so much attention being given to the minutiae of this just confirms the Westminster bubble in their mind and they don’t like it."
Champion also emphasized that a leadership challenge is “absolutely the last thing that we want right now.”
Donald Trump Criticizes Starmer’s Appointment of Mandelson
Donald Trump has continued to engage with Keir Starmer primarily through online commentary. Overnight, on his Truth Social network, Trump criticized Starmer’s choice of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US, calling it a “really bad pick.”
Olly Robbins to Testify on Mandelson Vetting Process
At 9 a.m., Olly Robbins will provide evidence to the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee concerning the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US. Robbins was until recently the Permanent Secretary at the Foreign Office. His predecessor, Simon McDonald, previously revealed information that contradicted Boris Johnson’s statements about his knowledge of a minister’s sleaze allegation. Although Robbins is not expected to reveal information of similar magnitude, his testimony represents a significant moment for Keir Starmer.
Robbins was dismissed for not informing Starmer that Mandelson failed his security vetting interview after the announcement of his appointment. If Robbins could prove that Starmer was informed, it would be politically damaging for the Prime Minister; however, this is not anticipated.
The hearing will focus on the disagreement between Starmer and Robbins regarding whether Robbins should have informed Downing Street. Starmer asserts that Robbins should have done so; Robbins is expected to argue that confidentiality was required during the vetting process and that only the final decision mattered. Ultimately, Robbins granted vetting approval, overriding the officials’ recommendation.
The critical question is why Robbins chose to approve the vetting. This will be challenging for Starmer because Robbins is likely to contend that he felt pressured to approve the vetting since Starmer had already expressed his desire for Mandelson to receive the position, despite the known complications.
Robbins indicated this position in November last year, telling the committee:
"Back before Lord Mandelson was announced as the appointee, there was a process … within the Cabinet Office to make sure that the prime minister was aware of Lord Mandelson and the issues around his appointment. There was then a process of clearing his conflicts of interest, which the employing department [the Foreign Office] oversaw, which we have talked about. In parallel with that process, we also went through the standard UK national security vetting process for DV [developed vetting]."
Mandelson failed the DV interview. However, Robbins emphasized that by that time, Mandelson had already been approved by the Cabinet Office’s due diligence process, a separate vetting exercise. Robbins also stated:
"By the time we are describing [when DV was carried out], it was clear that the prime minister wanted to make this appointment himself."
Steven Swinford and Oliver Wright highlight that Starmer “will be accused of pressuring the Foreign Office into approving the appointment of Lord Mandelson despite being aware of his friendship with the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and his business links to Russia and China.”
For further analysis of the issues likely to arise during the hearing, see the report by Kiran Stacey, Henry Dyer, and Paul Lewis.
Schedule for the Day
- 9 a.m.: Olly Robbins gives evidence to the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee.
- 9:30 a.m.: Cabinet meeting chaired by the Prime Minister, including a political cabinet session.
- 9:30 a.m.: The Good Growth Foundation hosts the National Growth Debate with speeches from Ed Miliband, Rachel Reeves, and Darren Jones.
- 10 a.m.: Executives from TikTok, Meta, Roblox, and academics provide evidence to the Commons Education Committee on screen time and social media.
- 11:30 a.m.: Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper answers questions in the Commons.
- Noon: Downing Street holds a lobby briefing.
- After 12:30 p.m.: Chancellor Rachel Reeves makes a statement to MPs.
- After 1:30 p.m.: MPs begin an emergency debate tabled by the Tories on the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US.
- 2:20 p.m.: Scottish First Minister John Swinney speaks at the STUC conference.
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