Mandelson Ambassador Scandal: Starmer Faces Heat

0:00I'm Cory with the story, and you've been listening to Europe News today, AI-powered European coverage. Downing Street is pointing fingers at foreign office officials for approving Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington, even though he failed. Security vetting, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer says he was furious when he learned the department overruled the experts who recommended against clearance. Number 10 claims they kept asking for assurances, but got no heads up on the failure. Sir Oli Robbins, the foreign office's top civil servant, got sacked over this mess. Starmer lost an investigation and insists no ministers knew about the vetting's nag. Meanwhile, a former official defended the process, saying ministers are never told personal vetting details, it's actually against the rules to share. Them Opposition leaders are piling on, with conservative head Khemi Badenah calling Starmer's position untenable and demanding he resign. Several Democrats and others want probes into whether he misled parliament, and even 37%

1:02of labor backers think he hasn't been, straight. This all ties back to Mandelson's known ties to Jeffrey Epstein after the financiers conviction. Starmer faces MPs on Monday, promising full facts and accountability. The Foreign Affairs Committee wants Robbins to testify next week, while ethics watchdogs might dig deeper. As this scandal heats up, it raises big questions about judgment in high stakes picks. Subscribe and I on those comments, clashes for what drops next.