Mandelson’s Epstein links haunting Starmer
Former Labour grandee’s appearance in latest court documents is proving uncomfortable for Sir Keir
Among the many powerful players with whom Jeffrey Epstein surrounded himself was a senior British politician he affectionately referred to as “Petie”.
The pair are said to have enjoyed a “particularly close friendship”. But while others in Epstein’s orbit, such as the Duke of York, have been hauled over the coals, Lord Mandelson has thus far not been embroiled in the controversy. Much like the Duke, though, the former Labour grandee discovered this week that links to the convicted paedophile are unlikely to be forgotten. Lord Mandelson, one of the best-known New Labour spin doctors, features in the latest tranche of court documents released in New York. A photograph buried in the legal papers shows him trying on a belt in a fashion boutique in St Barts, watched by Epstein. The trip was orchestrated by Ghislaine Maxwell, who Lord Mandelson met through her father, Robert, the one-time Labour MP and disgraced newspaper magnate, in the early 1990s. The resurfaced image prompted concern in Labour circles, in which Lord Mandelson is embedded as
‘As a man of the law, Sir Keir may well have questions to ask of his close ally’
the party sets its sights on Downing Street. Aware of the fragile nature of this house of cards, many consider this former friendship a dangerous red flag and believe Sir Keir Starmer should sever ties with Lord Mandelson and suspend him from the party.
One senior Labour MP told The Daily Telegraph: “If Mandelson was a man on the left of centre, he would certainly have been suspended by the current leadership. There’s an element of political hypocrisy here. People have been suspended for less, and here we have clear evidence, including a photograph, that Mandelson was closely connected to a proven paedophile. I think Starmer should cut ties with him.”
In an intriguing sign of Lord Mandelson’s continued influence, the MP said that they could not speak out against him publicly for fear of reprisals from the Labour leadership.
Meanwhile, a Tory source said: “Mandelson is closely involved in Sir Keir’s bid to win the next general election. He had a front row seat at the last Labour Party conference ... and has been tapping up donors for the party’s war chest. As a man of the law, Sir Keir may well have questions to ask of his close ally’s links to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.”
The photo in question was taken in 2005 or 2006. Lord Mandelson – who was the EU trade commissioner at the time – was there on holiday and arranged to meet Maxwell, who was likely to have been staying on Little Saint James, Epstein’s Caribbean island that is a short hop away by private jet. Maxwell brought Epstein with her and the pair accompanied Lord Mandelson on his shopping jaunt. It is understood the trio enjoyed ice creams and coffee.
Lord Mandelson remains in the dark about how the image made its way into court documents concerning a 2015 defamation case brought against Maxwell by trafficking victim Virginia Giuffre. However, The Telegraph has been told that it was handed to lawyers by Sarah Ransome, one of Epstein’s accusers, who in turn was given it by the notorious alleged rapist and sex trafficker Jean-luc Brunel as a memento of her 2006 visit to Little Saint James. Brunel was found hanged in his jail cell in February 2022 following his arrest in France.
The photo was one of several submitted to the court by Ms Ransome’s lawyers, who said they were “highly relevant” to claims of sex trafficking and abuse. The others included a plethora of young women posing for photos on Epstein’s private island. Barely 24 hours after they were released this week, the images were rescinded by the court and republished with many faces, including Lord Mandelson’s, obscured. A legal source said they had inadvertently revealed the identity of a woman who had asked to remain anonymous. In a statement given to The Telegraph this week, a spokesman for Lord Mandelson said he “very much regrets ever having been introduced to Epstein”. It added: “This connection has been a matter of public record for some time. He never had any kind of professional or business relationship with Epstein in any form.”
There is no doubt, however, that it was a friendship that endured for many years. Specific details about when the Labour peer first came into Epstein’s orbit are hazy. A story published in New York magazine revealed that he was a guest at an intimate dinner party at the financier’s Manhattan home alongside Donald Trump and other high-profile figures in 2002. He had recently been re-elected as Hartlepool’s MP by a large majority, facing down critics who had claimed he was headed for “political oblivion”. The pair were pictured together celebrating a birthday at Epstein’s Paris apartment in January 2007 – a year after he was charged with soliciting a woman for prostitution in August 2006. In June 2009, when he was Gordon Brown’s business secretary, Lord Mandelson is said to have stayed at Epstein’s lavish Manhattan townhouse while the financier was in prison. He has never confirmed or denied the claim, nor offered an explanation.
That month, he had been given the title “first secretary of state”. Days later, Epstein wrote to Jes Staley, then his personal banker at JP Morgan, from prison: “Well for all intends [sic] and purposes, Peter Mandelson is now deputy prime minister.”
It was a move that no doubt delighted the shamed financier, who revelled in surrounding himself with influential figures. An internal JP Morgan report from 2019, filed to a New York court last June and first reported by the Financial Times, listed various meetings and conversations between Epstein and Lord Mandelson.
In one June 2009 email, Epstein wrote to Mr Staley: “Peter will be staying at 71st over the weekend, do you want to organize either you or you and Jamie, quiertly [sic], up to you.”
The message is understood to refer to 9 East 71st Street, Epstein’s Manhattan home.
In March 2010, Lord Mandelson contacted Epstein referencing an apparent health issue and asked for information on new American banking regulations. On two later occasions, in November 2010 and January 2011, when Lord Mandelson was no longer in government, Epstein told Mr Staley that “Petie” was with him in Paris. In January 2010, only months after Epstein’s release from jail, Mr Staley asked him for help setting up a meeting with either Lord Mandelson or Alistair Darling, the chancellor at the time. Epstein replied: “I’ve set up you and Peter to meet in Davos with Darling,” a reference to the World Economic Forum in Switzerland.
The following year, news of their friendship became public knowledge when it emerged that Epstein’s “little black book” featured 10 entries for him and his partner, Reinaldo da Silva – as well as an office address for Tony Blair.
Ms Giuffre told the The Mail on Sunday: ‘I never heard of Jeffrey knowing Tony Blair, but he did know Peter Mandelson. I remember him being at the house in New York and I was introduced to him at a dinner party. He and Jeffrey talked business together. I assumed they were in business together. I was never asked to give him [Mandelson] a massage.”
The former MP was apparently undeterred by the slew of unsavoury claims gradually making their way into the public domain. In 2014, three years after Prince Andrew was forced to quit his role as trade envoy following a furore about him visiting Epstein in New York, Lord Mandelson agreed to be a “founding citizen” of Maxwell’s Terramar conservation project.
Fast forward to 2021, and he was enlisted by Sir Keir to transform the party’s fortunes after the toxic Jeremy Corbyn years. Since then, he has cemented his position as a trusted sounding board, described by The Guardian late last year as “a core part of Starmer’s network”.
A Labour source said: “Keir speaks to a number of people from the last Labour government, including Peter Mandelson, and that will continue to be the case.”
The pair last spoke in December, at Mr Darling’s funeral. But last week, Sir Keir himself had an uncomfortable reminder of Epstein’s reach when he was asked, during a keynote speech on transparency in Bristol, whether Lord Mandelson had questions to answer.
Clearly taken aback, Sir Keir said: “On Peter Mandelson, look, and I do try to give pretty full answers in these sessions … I don’t know any more than you do and therefore there’s not really much I can add to what you already know, I’m afraid, you know that’s simply the state of the affairs.”
For a Labour leader in touching distance of the premiership, Lord Mandelson’s experience is seen as too valuable to surrender. He has no plans to curtail regular communication with the former MP, who despite being a valuable sounding board, has no formal role. While Sir Keir jumped on the bandwagon last week and urged the Metropolitan Police to “look at” the sexual abuse allegations made against the Duke of York, when it comes to Lord Mandelson’s poor judgment, he appears happy to turn a blind eye.