A senior civil servant faces questions about Lord Peter Mandelson’s vetting process, as pressure grows on Keir Starmer over the appointment. Cat Little, the most senior Cabinet Office official, is appearing before the Foreign Affairs Committee to discuss the process of how the disgraced peer got clearance.
The PM sacked Sir Olly Robbins last week after discovering he had not been informed that the Foreign Office had sent Lord Mandelson to Washington despite security officials raising concerns about his vetting. But the top mandarin insisted on Tuesday he was right not to pass the information on and accused No10 of a "dismissive" attitude to vetting, and claimed pressure had been put on his department to fast-track the appointment.
Key Developments in the Hearing
Cat Little told the committee she became aware of the Mandelson vetting issues on March 25 and informed the PM on April 14. She said: "I do believe that I acted as swiftly and effectively and appropriately as I could." She explained the delay was due to seeking legal advice: "I immediately sought legal … advice, because this is such an unusual thing for a government official to do, to handle that sort of security information."
Ms Little insisted "due process" was followed in the appointment. She stated: "My view is that due process was followed. And if I might explain why I believe that, it is because the process as I’ve outlined to the committee is that UKSV make a recommendation and the Foreign Office make a decision as to whether to grant DV. That is the process and that is the process that is agreed with the Foreign Office."
Dispute Over Access to Documents
Ms Little claimed she had a meeting where she asked to see the Foreign Office’s documents about the decision to grant Mandelson vetting, only to be told that "that information would not be forthcoming". She said: "In the middle of March, I have a meeting with Sir Olly and a senior meeting of his team and this is after the point that I’ve been told that this summary document exists. I specifically ask to see this document and any decision-making audit trail around those judgments around the time. It was made clear to me that that information would not be forthcoming."
When asked about Sir Olly Robbins’ claims that he tried to access his vetting file but was told he couldn’t, Ms Little answered that she could not find evidence of that request.
Vetting Process and Cabinet Office Role
Ms Little explained that UK Security Vetting produces a report after the DV process with two recommendations: "One sets out the level of concern and the other sets out the overall recommendation on whether to grant developed vetting that is non-binding. It is meant to be helpful information for the ultimate decision maker, in this case, the Foreign Office, to make a final decision."
The Cabinet Office held talks with the Foreign Office about whether Lord Mandelson required security vetting but did not try to block the process. Ms Little said: "Because the presumption had been that given Peter Mandelson had been a member of the House of Lords, that the long-standing convention that he didn’t require developed vetting was assumed, and they wanted to get proper policy advice from experts on whether that was the case."
As secretary of the Cabinet Office, Ms Little is responsible for services provided to other departments, including UK Security Vetting, but has nothing to do with its day-to-day operations. She told the Committee: "I have not been involved at all" in the process of appointing Lord Mandelson, noting that it was "unusual but not unprecedented for a political appointee to take up a role in an ambassadorial position".
Political Fallout
Last night Labour MP Dan Carden declined to back the PM. Asked if he had confidence in Keir Starmer, he said: "He’ll take us into the local elections and that will be a moment where the public have been consulted & there’ll be results."
Claims of a Cabinet split over the Lord Peter Mandelson scandal are "guff", a minister said. Home Office minister Alex Norris told LBC: "No, it’s a load of guff. If I had a pound, certainly under the previous government, for the number of times I saw Cabinet stories in the papers, my St George’s pints would probably be more multiple than there will be in reality. We’re getting on with the job, that’s what we’re doing and we’re united."
Keir Starmer’s former top aide Morgan McSweeney will also be hauled before MPs next week as the Prime Minister battles to curb the fallout from the scandal. Mr McSweeney dramatically quit in February, saying he took "full responsibility" for advising the PM to appoint Lord Mandelson as US ambassador amid backlash over the peer's ties to notorious paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
