Starmer's Mandelson Pick Unravels, Robbins Faces Grilling

0:00On April 20, Kear Starmer spacing heat over appointing Peter Mendelssohn as UK ambassador to the United States, despite vetting red flags tied to. Jeffrey Epstein victims. On Monday, the Prime Minister went hard at former Foreign Office boss Ali Robbins, laying blame squarely on him with timelines, letters, and A. Promise for a fresh inquiry. Starmer said he never would have made the pick if he'd known Mendelssohn flunked the checks. But he dodged in a real meoculpa for possibly misleading parliament earlier, which has folks remembering how he hammered Boris Johnson for the same. Thing during partygate. Allies say Starmer just can't admit his own slip-ups, and insiders admit number 10 pushed risky moves to get Mendelssohn in any way, ignoring warnings. Labor MPs showed up grumpy but not raging, and so whips handed out prep questions loaded with Epstein victim quotes to shift blame back to. Mendelssohn. That backfired big time, sparking fresh fury. One backbenture called it outrageous, not contrition.

1:00Critics like Rachel Maskell and John McDonald piled on from the benches, while others skipped for local election hustling. Starmer's still deeply unpopular, with polls dipping and no clear vision lighting up the party. MPs agree it's not prime time for a leadership swap amid economic storms, and no ready replacements, but the odds of a post-made challenge jump from. 4 out of 10 to 7 out of 10 in some eyes. All eyes now turn to Tuesday at 9am, when Ali Robyn spaces the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. If he drops anything contradicting Starmer's Monday defense, it could unravel the Prime Minister's grip, just like a past-top official did to Johnson. The jury's still out on whether this drama sinks, Starmer's ship, or just rocks it a bit harder.