The Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has broken ranks and she is blaming Downing Street for the appointment of Lord Peter Mandelson as the US ambassador.
Cooper made it clear that the Foreign Office was not involved in any due diligence prior to Lord Mandelson’s appointment.
However, formal security vetting is overseen by the Foreign Office which took place after Mandelson’s appointment was made public.
The FCDO Permanent Secretary Sir Oliver Robbins and the Foreign Secretary have now distanced themselves from the vetting process.
This will place more pressure on Sir Keir Starmer.
Sir Oliver and Cooper said in a joint letter, “The Propriety and Ethics Team in the Cabinet Office (PET) conducted a due diligence process, prior to the announcement of Peter Mandelson’s appointment on December 20, 2024 at the request of No10.
“The FCDO was not asked to contribute to that process and no issues were raised with the FCDO as a result of this process.
“This was not a security check.
“After Peter Mandelson’s appointment was announced, [the FCDO] started the ambassadorial appointment process, including National Security Vetting, in advance of him taking up his post.
Plaid Cymru’s leader in Westminster Liz Saville-Roberts told the House of Commons, “The Prime Minister staked his special relationship with the US president on the diplomatic skills of an ambassador who had a special relationship with the world’s most notorious child sex offender.
Reform UK Deputy Leader Richard Tice said that he does not believe Starmer will “last until May” and accused the Prime Minister that he “misled” Parliament.
Tice said, “It was a extraordinary three-hour debate, and I raised two issues.
“One is the Prime Minister’s woeful political judgment, because he personally made the decision to appoint Lord Mandelson in the knowledge, with a two-page dossier summary, that he basically had links to a convicted paedophile.
And then also I think he actually inadvertently misled the House of Commons last Wednesday, when he said that a full due process had been carried out during the appointment.
A Downing Street source told Guido that Downing Street staff worked “all weekend trying to piece together an acceptable timeline to excuse the inexcusable.
The source added that McSweeney’s “f**k-up is now causing untold damage” to the Labour government.
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