A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office official familiar with the final shortlist process, and granted anonymity to speak freely, described a “massive fightback in the past days” to sway Prime Minister Keir Starmer towards a diplomat candidate and rule out Chandra.
They put the shift in direction in No. 10 down to a mix of “assiduous lobbying” about both the risks of another political appointee and the importance of a pick with security and tough negotiating experience – as well as the advantages of lifting Foreign Office morale in the midst of job cuts.
The key diplomatic post has been vacant since Mandelson, a long-serving Labour politician, resigned from the role amid fresh scrutiny of his friendship with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Burning issues in the in-tray of the winner will including resolving a fresh dispute with the Trump administration over a flagship Tech Prosperity Deal the two sides landed on earlier this year — and which has been put on ice by Washington.
No. 10 has tried to downplay the spat, saying it is all part of “complex” and “active” discussions with the U.S.