As Westminster continues to sift the political fallout from Peter Mandelson’s short-lived return to public service, newly released government files show the former UK ambassador to the United States privately telling ministers they would “never regret” choosing him for the Washington post.
The government this afternoon published a second tranche of documents tied to Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s decision to hand the prestigious US role to Mr Mandelson rather than a career diplomat.
The papers also indicate Mr Mandelson apparently “declined to comply” with a request to surrender his personal phone and permit the publication of WhatsApp messages and other material connected to his appointment.
Before the release, Mr Starmer’s official spokesman characterised the cross-government exercise to publish the records as an “unprecedented piece of government transparency”.
Ministers had been braced for potentially uncomfortable disclosures in the files, which contain thousands of WhatsApp exchanges that were previously private and involve figures at the highest levels of government.
Parliament ordered the disclosure after revelations about Mr Mandelson’s links to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Mr Mandelson was dismissed in September 2025, nine months after taking up the job, when further details surfaced about his friendship with Epstein.
Later disclosures in the Epstein Files prompted a Metropolitan Police investigation into alleged misconduct in public office.
Number 10 suggested the publication represents the full set of materials it intends to release on Mr Mandelson, aside from documents being withheld at the request of Scotland Yard so as not to jeopardise the ongoing investigation.
Officials have likened the scale of the review of Mr Mandelson-related records to the sifting and disclosure process for the UK Covid-19 Inquiry. The new release is believed to be the second largest publication ever made to the House of Commons.
MPs voted in February to compel ministers to produce a broad range of documents about the appointment, invoking an archaic parliamentary mechanism known as a “humble address”.
The first tranche, made public in March, showed Mr Starmer had been warned of a “general reputational risk” stemming from Mr Mandelson’s connection to Epstein.
The second batch includes WhatsApp messages involving Mr Mandelson, ministers and government advisers, among them Mr Starmer’s former chief of staff, Irish man Morgan McSweeney.
Morgan McSweeney pictured answering questions from the UK’s Foreign Affairs Committee in April
Former health secretary Wes Streeting has already released his own messages with Mr Mandelson, which included discussion of Gaza and criticisms of Mr Starmer’s leadership.
The latest documents show Mr Mandelson also exchanged WhatsApp messages with a number of British government ministers.
Among the newly published material is a handwritten note from Mr Mandelson to then-foreign secretary David Lammy, in which he said the British government would “never regret” appointing him ambassador to Washington DC.
The letter, written in blue pen on notepaper bearing Mr Mandelson’s name and a House of Lords seal, and dated 11 November 2024, read:
“Dear David, As today (and all week) is polling day in Oxford and I am returning to London, I wanted to drop you a line, personally, about Washington.
“Thankfully, the media speculation has gone away and I hope this was not too irritating to you. I just wanted you to know that if you were minded to appoint me I would make sure you never regret it.
“I fear that navigating Britain’s interests through the Trump administration will require super-human skills and luck and a massive team effort.
“There is so much riding on it, on security and defence, on trade and economy and on the relationship, not to mention China.
“If we all put our best minds and energy to it, I think we can pull it off but we have to be realistic.
“For me it would be the last thing I do in public life and it would be a huge honour to serve you and the Government in this role. So if you are up for it, so am I.”
