Peter Mandelson has admitted that the publication of intimate letters and photos of him and Jeffrey Epstein are “very embarrassing”. Britain’s ambassador to Washington sent a gushing 10-page letter to the dead peadofile for his 50th birthday, featuring photos of him in a bathrobe and describing the financier as his “best pal”.
Amid growing calls for him to resign or be sacked, this morning Lord Mandelson finally broke his silence on the friendship. He branded the published images and letters “very embarrassing to see and to read”, though he insisted: “They were written before he was indicted.
“I feel a profound sense of sympathy for those people, those women, who suffered as a result of his behaviour and his illegal criminal activities. And secondly I regret very very deeply indeed carrying on that association with him for far longer than I should have done.
“It was a matter of years after I initially met him. I regret very much that I fell for his lies, and accepted assurances he had given me about his indictment, his original criminal case in Florida. Like many people, I took at face value what he said.
“With hindsight… we realised we had been wrong to believe him. A charismatic, criminal liar… I felt it like an albatross around my neck since his death in 2019.”
Speaking to the Sun, Lord Mandelson dodged questions about whether the relationship makes his top job in DC untenable.
He argued that the question of whether to publish the entirety of the so-called Epstein Files is “not a matter for me”, adding: “I don’t believe I’m named in the Epstein Files.
“I’ve no doubt there’s a lot of correspondence between us, and we know those are going to surface, they’re going to come out, they’re going to be very embarrassing and they know that I’m going to profoundly regret ever having met him and been introduced to him in the first place.”
He clarified he hasn’t discussed his relationship with Epstein with either the President or Sir Keir.
Last night calls for him to lose the top diplomatic post emerged from both Labour MPs and victims of Mr Epstein.
One MP briefed the Telegraph: “Mandelson has to be responsible for the associations and friendships that he forms. We can make a judgment quite legitimately on relationships that he has made.
“It’s not good enough to say: ‘Whoops, I shouldn’t be associated with him now.’ You shouldn’t have been associated with him then. The easiest way round this for Mandelson is to step down. He should put the reputation of Britain abroad first.
“He should realise the damage done and step down. If he refuses to do that, then the Prime Minister should do the right thing and sack him.”
A second added: “He ought to resign. He knows how to stand down, after all. This would be the third time at least.”
They were joined by victims of the financier, including 41-year-old Sarah Ransome who demanded: “Something is really, really wrong here. Peter Mandelson should not be ambassador. He needs to be fired. He is unsuitable to be ambassador.”
Spencer Kuvin, the attorney who represented nine victims, added: “By allowing someone with clear ties to one of the worst sex abusers of our time to be ambassador is an insult to the victims of Epstein. This man should be questioned by the FBI and the UK government immediately to find out what he knows and whether he has visited any of Epstein’s homes in the past.”
Downing Street insisted Lord Mandelson had already issued comments defending himself, but would not clarify whether they had done their own investigation.