Starmer has said Mandelson “repeatedly lied” to No. 10 about the extent of his friendship with Epstein — but the paper trail that would show what Downing Street knew, and when, remains caught in a tussle between police and the government.
The prime minister has faced questions about his judgment in giving Mandelson the plum role, despite knowing he had continued his friendship with Epstein after his conviction, and has pledged transparency over the decision — which will be complicated by efforts to hold back key exchanges.
The scandal has already cost the job of McSweeney, one of Starmer’s most senior allies, after he pushed for Mandelson’s appointment.
MPs voted earlier this month to release documents relating to Mandelson’s appointment as ambassador, as well as a much wider cache of emails and text messages between Mandelson and ministers and political advisers in the ruling Labour Party.
While the total cache amounts to tens of thousands of documents, the two people mentioned above said the process is currently prioritizing the much smaller number of files that relate directly to Mandelson’s appointment.
Of those files relating to his appointment, the Met Police have asked for a smaller subset to be held back while its investigation into Mandelson is under way, one of the two people said.
The exchange with McSweeney was part of a wider vetting that Mandelson went through as part of his appointment. He was also subject to due diligence by the Cabinet Office, followed by deep security vetting after his posting had been announced.
The Metropolitan Police are investigating whether Mandelson committed misconduct in public office after a 2009 email exchange, released in the Epstein files, appeared to show him forwarding the details of government financial discussions to Epstein. Officers have not yet interviewed Mandelson and he has denied wrongdoing.