Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is bracing for another challenging week as the controversy surrounding the vetting process for Lord Peter Mandelson's appointment as ambassador to Washington continues to unfold. On Monday, Sir Keir will attempt to redirect attention by delivering a speech focused on combating shoplifting. However, he faces increasing scrutiny over revelations about the vetting of the peer and his own handling of the matter, including the dismissal of Foreign Office chief Sir Olly Robbins.
On Tuesday, the Foreign Affairs Committee is scheduled to hear testimony from Sir Keir's former chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, who is widely seen as a protégé of Lord Mandelson. McSweeney resigned in February over his involvement in securing the prestigious role for the peer. The committee will also hear from Sir Olly's predecessor, Sir Philip Barton, and receive written evidence from Foreign Office official Ian Collard. According to Sir Olly, Collard briefed him on vetting findings that deemed Lord Mandelson a borderline case and leaned toward recommending denial of security clearance.
Last week, the Prime Minister asserted that any claims he misled Parliament had been resolved by Sir Olly's evidence. Nevertheless, the Conservatives have called for Sir Keir to face the Privileges Committee—the same body that investigated Boris Johnson over the COVID-19 partygate affair. Reports indicate that a vote on whether to refer the Prime Minister for such a probe could take place on Tuesday. The decision to allow a vote rests with Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle.
Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds dismissed the Tory efforts as “silly political games.” Speaking to Sky News, she said: “Ten days ago we had Kemi Badenoch and other members of the opposition saying that the Prime Minister deliberately misled Parliament. He didn’t, and that was categorically proven last week, and they’ve accepted that. He has not lied to Parliament. So I do think that the Opposition – guess what, 10 days out from local elections and important elections in Scotland and Wales – are playing silly political games when we should be talking about the big issues at stake in the country here.” She declined to speculate on whether Labour MPs would be whipped to oppose any attempt to refer Sir Keir to the Privileges Committee.
Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones on Sunday accused the Conservatives of “using tactics” ahead of local elections on May 7. Additionally, former Labour Cabinet ministers Alan Johnson and David Blunkett released a joint statement denouncing the move as a “nakedly political stunt with no substance” in the run-up to the polls. They argued that a referral to the watchdog would waste public money and described comparisons with Boris Johnson as “absurd.”
“When Parliament referred that matter to the Privileges Committee, a police investigation had directly disproved his categoric statements that he knew nothing about the breach of lockdown rules including parties in Downing Street, and therefore he had a case to answer for knowingly misleading the House of Commons,” they stated.
