The Metropolitan Police has launched a criminal investigation into Peter Mandelson over allegations of misconduct in public office.
It comes after the former Labour minister and US ambassador was accused of passing market-sensitive government information to US financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Emails released by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) appear to show Lord Mandelson forwarded information to Epstein when he was business secretary under former Prime Minister Gordon Brown in 2009.
Lord Mandelson did not respond to requests for comment but the BBC understands his position is that he has not acted in any way criminally and that he was not motivated by financial gain.
A government spokesperson said: “The government stands ready to provide whatever support and assistance the police need.”
Lord Mandelson – who was sacked as the UK’s ambassador to the US last year – has told parliamentary authorities he intends to resign from the House of Lords on Wednesday.
On Monday, the Scottish National Party and Reform UK said they had reported the peer to Scotland Yard and on Tuesday, the UK government said it had referred material to the police after assessing emails Lord Mandelson appeared to have sent to Epstein while he was business secretary.
A No 10 spokesperson said an “initial review” of the documents had found they contained “likely market sensitive information surrounding the 2008 financial crash”.
Brown – who was prime minister between 2007 and 2010 – said he had written to Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley with “relevant” information relating to Lord Mandelson’s apparent correspondence with Epstein.
Brown said he had shared with police a letter he had sent in September asking the cabinet secretary to “investigate the veracity of information contained in the Epstein papers regarding the sale of assets arising from the banking collapse and communications about them between Lord Mandelson and Mr Epstein”.
Brown said the alleged correspondence was an “inexcusable and unpatriotic act at a time when the whole government and country were attempting to address the global financial crisis”.
In a statement, Met Police Commander Ella Marriott said: “Following the further release of millions of court documents in relation to Jeffrey Epstein by the United States Department of Justice, the Met received a number of reports into alleged misconduct in public office including a referral from the UK government.
“I can confirm that the Metropolitan Police has now launched an investigation into a 72-year-old man, a former government minister, for misconduct in public office offences.
“The Met will continue to assess all relevant information brought to our attention as part of this investigation and won’t be commenting any further at this time.
By Anthony Solly
