Olly Robbins and Mandelson’s vetting: what did he do, why – and who knew?

Fiddling with his reading glasses, the then cabinet secretary, Sir Chris Wormald – sitting alongside the most senior civil servant in the Foreign Office, Sir Olly Robbins – suddenly appeared a little tense.The bonhomie evident in earlier answers had quite disappeared.It was 3 November 2025, and Peter Mandelson had been removed from his post as ambassador to the US two months earlier, after the disclosure of Jeffrey Epstein’s emails.MPs on the cross-party foreign affairs select committee were grilling the most senior civil servants involved in Mandelson’s appointment about the vetting and due diligence.Just over an hour in, Fleur Anderson, the MP for Putney, asked what can now be seen as a crucial question about the process: “In general, what is the end product of all that vetting? Does it all get put into one report? Who receives that report?”“The report is received by the employing department and employing line manager – in this case, that would be Sir Oliver,” Wormald responded, looking to his left towards Robbins

Five unanswered questions on Keir Starmer’s Mandelson debacle

Downing Street has tried to do a lot of explaining, as has Keir Starmer himself. But there are still plenty of things we do not know about how Peter Mandelson failed security vetting, and what the prime minister did or did not know about it.A fairly key question. Downing Street is clear: it is “staggering” that Mandelson failed vetting, and that the Foreign Office not only overruled this but told no one in No 10.However, Ciaran Martin, a former top civil servant with past involvement in vetting work – and a close friend of the ousted Olly Robbins – said this was an oversimplification

‘Almost like a Bond villain’: why Labour MPs expect Starmer to cling on as PM

It still feels improbable that the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, will face a formal challenge even if, as assumed, his Labour party performs disastrously in next month’s local elections. But for many of his MPs, the latest revelations about Peter Mandelson have emphasised that the question is simply one of when, not if.“It does seems incredible that he didn’t know, but the problem is that it’s quite possible as well,” was the summary of one backbencher, in response to No 10’s insistence that no one had told the prime minister that his pick to be the UK ambassador to Washington had failed his security vetting.Some MPs believe the Mandelson vetting fiasco could be terminally damaging for a prime minister who, as one said, had painted himself as “whiter than white”. “I can’t see how he survives this,” one said

Starmer says it is ‘staggering’ and ‘unforgivable’ he was not told Mandelson failed vetting – as it happened

The prime minister has spoken to reporters in Paris this morning, saying it is “unforgivable” and “staggering” he wasn’t told Peter Mandelson was denied security clearance.He said:double quotation markThat I wasn’t told that he’d failed security vetting when I was telling parliament that due process had been followed is unforgivable.Not only was I not told, no minister was told and I’m absolutely furious about it.Keir Starmer added:double quotation markIt is totally unacceptable that the prime minister making an appointment is not told that security vetting has been failed.He added he will “set out all the relevant facts in true transparency” to parliament on Monday

Peter Mandelson’s failed security vetting: a timeline of the controversy

Keir Starmer is facing calls to resign after the Guardian revealed that Peter Mandelson failed the developed vetting process over his appointment as US ambassador – but was able to take up the post after the Foreign Office overruled the recommendation.Here is the timeline of Mandelson’s controversial appointment and the fallout it has caused.Labour wins a landslide election victory engineered by Mandelson’s protege Morgan McSweeney, of whom Mandelson once said: “I don’t know who and how and when he was invented. But whoever it was, they will find their place in heaven.” Mandelson said the election win was “an extraordinary achievement for Keir Starmer and his team”

More than half of Britons support rejoining EU 10 years on from Brexit vote

Support for rejoining the EU rather than simply rejoining the single market is growing among British voters, with more than 80% of Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green party supporters favouring this option, according to research mapping voter attitudes 10 years after the Brexit referendum.Labour’s “muted” approach to the issue means it risks losing support among progressive voters and in “red wall” constituencies, experts have said as part of research by Best for Britain.While 61% of all voters supported the government’s current approach to EU relations, only 19% did so “strongly”, the research showed.A full return to the EU was supported by 53% of all voters with support at 83% among Labour voters, 84% Liberal Democrat and 82% Green, the polling found.Of Conservative and Reform voters, 39% and 18% backed the policy respectively, Best for Britain found

Olly Robbins is just the latest: a guide to the high-profile exits under Starmer’s tenure

The exit of the top civil servant Olly Robbins from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is the latest departure of an official or minister under Keir Starmer’s two-year tenure as prime minister. Here we take a look at some of the most high-profile resignations since Starmer came to power.Gray was the prime minister’s chief of staff from July to October 2024. She became a household name when, as second permanent secretary to the Cabinet Office, she investigated the Partygate scandal. Her subsequent criticism of the government led by Boris Johnson ultimately contributed to his resignationSue Gray resigned from her position as Starmer’s chief of staff in October 2024 after finding herself at the centre of a political storm since Labour came to power in July

Southport inquiry chair to review Peter Mandelson vetting process

A retired court of appeal judge is expected to review Peter Mandelson’s vetting process and the wider national security vetting system.The review, commissioned by Downing Street, comes after a Guardian investigation revealing that security officials decided Mandelson should not receive developed vetting clearance, but were overruled by the Foreign Office to allow him to become US ambassador.The disclosure on Thursday led to the resignation of Olly Robbins, the top official in the Foreign Office, and increased pressure on Keir Starmer.The prime minister and other Cabinet colleagues have claimed that no ministers were aware Mandelson had failed vetting.According to multiple sources, the government plans to appoint Adrian Fulford to lead a formal review of the vetting process

Foreign Office’s top civil servant Olly Robbins forced out over Mandelson vetting row

Sir Olly Robbins, the UK Foreign Office’s top civil servant, has been forced out of his post after the decision to fail Peter Mandelson during his security vetting was overruled by his department.Robbins was the Foreign Office’s most senior official in late January 2025 when the decision was made, paving the way for Mandelson to become the US ambassador.The Guardian understands that Robbins was told he had to resign after prime minister Keir Starmer and foreign secretary Yvette Cooper lost confidence in the civil servant.The Guardian revealed on Thursday that Mandelson was initially denied clearance in late January 2025 after a developed vetting process, a highly confidential background check by security officials.Keir Starmer had by then announced he would be making Mandelson ambassador, posing a dilemma for officials at the Foreign Office, who decided to employ a rarely used authority to override the recommendation from security officials