Timeline: Mandelson Epstein row and Starmer vetting fallout

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said that if Starmer had known about the vetting failure he would never have appointed Mandelson; Technology Secretary Liz Kendall echoed that stance.

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch accused Starmer of misleading Parliament and the country; Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said Starmer showed catastrophic misjudgment; Badenoch also criticized the situation in a sharply worded letter asserting it damaged national security and relations with the United States.

Robbins is expected to testify before a parliamentary committee on Tuesday, April 21, 2026.

Top foreign office official Olly Robbins was sacked as part of the fallout, according to Reuters.

The prime minister was set to address Parliament on Monday to set out the facts concerning the vetting issue.

Starmer said it was 'unforgivable' he had not been informed earlier about the failed vetting and said he would set out the relevant facts before lawmakers.

Fresh revelations that Mandelson had failed a key security vetting process before his appointment were reported, deepening the controversy and triggering calls for Starmer to resign.

Starmer had earlier managed to contain internal dissent in February when some Labour MPs raised concerns over Mandelson’s appointment.

Peter Mandelson was removed from the role of UK ambassador to the United States in September 2025 after disclosures about the extent of his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein; Prime Minister Keir Starmer apologised for the appointment.