Starmer aide quits after fallout over Mandelson-Epstein documents

Morgan McSweeney, the chief of staff to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, resigned on Sunday after acknowledging responsibility for advising the prime minister to appoint Peter Mandelson as Britain’s ambassador to the United States. In comments reported by DW, AFP, AP and Reuters, McSweeney said: “The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong,” “He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself,” and “When asked, I advised the Prime Minister to make that appointment and I take full responsibility for that advice.”

The departure deepened a political crisis for Downing Street after newly published US documents prompted renewed scrutiny of Mandelson’s past relationship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to international wire reports. Those outlets said the document releases had intensified questions about Mandelson but did not set out formal allegations; one broadcast outlet, MS NOW, separately said the latest Department of Justice files suggested Mandelson “may have leaked market sensitive information to Epstein while he was business secretary,” a claim MS NOW said it drew from the DOJ material.

MS NOW also reported that “police have launched a criminal investigation into Mendelssohn [sic]. They also raided two of his homes over the weekend.” That assertion appears in the MS NOW transcript provided to reporters; it was not corroborated in the other accounts supplied in the coverage cited here.

McSweeney’s resignation follows a string of senior departures from No.10 that has unsettled the government. The Guardian reported that his exit comes after the recent losses of Paul Ovenden, the director of political strategy, and Steph Driver, the communications head. Al Jazeera reported that Tim Allan, described there as Starmer’s communications chief, stepped down a day after McSweeney, increasing pressure on the prime minister.

Longtime observers and commentators have framed McSweeney as a central architect of Starmer’s rise. Peter Oborne, republished in Byline Times, called McSweeney at various points a powerful strategist and argued his elevation to chief of staff after a power struggle with Sue Gray had been fraught. The Guardian noted internal complaints from some Labour MPs that McSweeney presided over an “unnecessarily factional, petty and cliquey Downing Street operation,” and described attempts by No.10 to manage the fallout as “seemingly botched,” with briefings reportedly centring on the health secretary, Wes Streeting, who reacted angrily.

The episode raises immediate questions about the vetting and political judgment behind high-profile diplomatic appointments and the resilience of Downing Street’s communications and political strategy teams. Critics say the controversy exposed weaknesses in internal decision-making and has cost the government several experienced aides in quick succession.

For the prime minister, McSweeney’s departure represents both a personnel setback and a governance challenge. The resignation leaves unanswered the extent of what was known about Mandelson at the time of his proposed appointment and whether further official inquiries are warranted. The differing accounts in reportage underscore that specific allegations emerging from US files and any law enforcement activity remain contested and in some cases uncorroborated in the material supplied to date.