Newly released documents from the Jeffrey Epstein case have exposed damning correspondence involving former Labour peer Peter Mandelson, revealing scornful comments about British people and questionable financial interactions with the disgraced financier.
Disparaging Remarks About the UK
In emails published as part of the latest tranche of over three million Epstein files released by the US Department of Justice, Mandelson made derogatory statements about his fellow citizens. On March 11, 2011, while discussing a potential apartment purchase in Rio de Janeiro, he wrote to Epstein: 'UK doesn't compete. Boring people in England, all either star struck or violently hostile. And not so pretty.'
This correspondence occurred while Mandelson was pursuing property interests in Brazil, the homeland of his husband Reinaldo Avila da Silva. The couple, who have lived together since 1998, married in October 2023 at Marylebone Town Hall in central London.
Sharing Government Information
The documents indicate that Mandelson, while serving as business secretary under then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown, passed market-sensitive UK government information to Epstein. In 2009, he sent the financier a government memo about potential UK asset sales and tax changes.
Furthermore, the emails suggest Mandelson gave Epstein advance notice in 2010 of a European Union 500-billion-euro bailout package during the bloc's debt crisis. These revelations have prompted the Metropolitan Police to open an investigation, with officers visiting Mandelson's homes in Regent's Park, north London, and Wiltshire last Friday.
Financial Arrangements Under Scrutiny
Mandelson's personal company, Willbury Ltd, has come under particular scrutiny. The company now holds reserves of £1,715,241, with recent accounts revealing that Mandelson and his husband were loaned £157,110 by the firm including interest in 2024. This loan amount has increased significantly from £59,306 in 2023 and just £3,526 in 2022.
Tax experts have raised concerns about these arrangements. Richard Murphy, a chartered accountant and director of campaign group Tax Research UK, commented: 'How to extract cash from small companies whilst paying as little tax as possible on the way is a massive part of the UK tax avoidance industry.'
Murphy added: 'Directors taking loans from companies they own is one way in which this is done, which has been widely condemned in the past when done by footballers and others. It's just about impossible to think this is motivated by anything but tax avoidance.'
Epstein Relationship Timeline
The email exchanges occurred while Epstein was already a registered sex offender, having been released from a Florida prison in July 2009 after serving 13 months of an 18-month sentence for soliciting prostitution from a minor. Previous email releases showed Mandelson offering emotional support to Epstein in 2008, shortly before he pleaded guilty to sex offence charges.
In those messages, Mandelson encouraged Epstein to 'fight for early release' and insisted: 'Your friends stay with you and love you.' The latest documents also reveal that Mandelson was tasked with finding Epstein a young assistant and a house in Marrakesh. In a December 25, 2010 message, Epstein wrote: 'Find me a new assistant, multi lingual, 22-25, wants to travel.. or in addition find a house in Marrakesh.'
Political Fallout and Denials
Mandelson was sacked as Britain's ambassador to Washington in September last year after Downing Street said new information about the depth of his relationship with Epstein had emerged. He has since resigned from the Labour Party and stated he would no longer use his peerage title. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has said Mandelson should be removed from the House of Lords.
No charges have been brought against Mandelson, who denies any criminal offences. A spokesman for Mandelson previously stated: 'Willbury Ltd is the company that oversees all of Lord Mandelson's writing, public speaking, broadcasting and personal commercial undertakings. It pays all relevant UK corporate taxes and Lord Mandelson pays all relevant personal taxes.'
The released emails also show Mandelson discussing his post-ministerial career plans with Epstein, outlining ambitions for his advisory firm Global Counsel and relationships with investment banks including J.P. Morgan, HSBC, Barclays and Lazard. He wrote to Epstein about wanting to participate in 'real deals' and not wanting to 'live by salary alone.'
