Five Things We Learned From the U.K. Government’s New Release of Mandelson Files—and How Trump Is Mentioned

The U.K. government released a second batch of files containing more than 1,500 pages on Monday relating to the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the U.S.

Mandelson took up the position in February 2025 but was sacked seven months later after files released by the U.S. Department of Justice relating to Jeffrey Epstein showed that Mandelson’s relationship with the late convicted sex offender extended beyond what he’d previously disclosed.

The release of additional Epstein-related documents by the DOJ in January prompted further scrutiny, as emails suggested Mandelson might have leaked sensitive government information to Epstein in 2009, when he served as Business Secretary under former Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

Mandelson was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office in February. He remains under investigation and has not been charged.  

Following his arrest, Mandelson’s lawyers said his “overriding priority is to cooperate with the police investigation, as he has done throughout this process, and to clear his name.”

TIME has reached out to Mandelson’s legal representatives for comment in light of the newly-released files.

In Westminster, the fallout over the appointment of Mandelson has sparked a political crisis.

The first batch of Mandelson files released in March revealed that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was warned of the “reputational risks” associated with Mandelson over his relationship with Epstein when considering his appointment as ambassador to the U.S.

Further information came to light a few weeks later, when it was revealed that Mandelson had failed the security vetting in January 2025, only for his appointment as ambassador to go ahead the following month anyway on account of the Foreign Office overruling the decision.

Starmer fiercely denied having prior knowledge of the initial failed vetting process and told parliament that “a deliberate decision was taken to withhold that material” from him.

The embattled U.K. Prime Minister faced strong calls to resign over the matter, with one lawmaker insisting he could not “conceivably continue” to lead the nation. 

The latest files, released at the behest of opposition lawmakers, have uncovered further items of correspondence from Mandelson—some that mention Starmer in a negative light.

Here are the key takeaways from the second batch of documents relating to Mandelson’s appointment in Washington. 

Mandelson told U.K. Foreign Secretary that government would “never regret” making him ambassador

A handwritten letter from Mandelson to then-Foreign Secretary David Lammy (who now serves as Justice Secretary) shows his eagerness to hold the D.C. position.

“I wanted to drop you a line, personally, about Washington,” read the letter dated Nov. 18, 2024. “Thankfully, the media speculation has gone away and I hope this was not too irritating to you.”

Mandelson was seemingly referring to the speculation that he might be headed to D.C. and the resurfacing of his previous ties to Epstein.

In the letter, Mandelson continued: “I just wanted you to know that if you were minded to appoint me, I would make sure you never regret it.”

Mandelson went on to reference U.S. President Donald Trump, who had recently been elected to return to the White House.

Appearing to position himself as an asset, Mandelson said: “I fear that navigating Britain’s interests through the Trump Administration will require super-human skills and luck and a massive team effort. There is so much riding on it, on security and defence, on trade and economy and on E.U. relationship, not to mention China.”

“If we all put our best minds and energy to it, I think we can pull it off, but we have to be realistic.”

Mandelson referred to the ambassador role as the “last thing” he will do in public life and said “it would be a huge honour to serve [Lammy] and the government in this role.”

Lammy addressed the release of the files on Monday by showcasing a letter addressed to the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, during which he answered questions they had posed to him about the appointment of Mandelson.

The Deputy Prime Minister insisted he “was not aware of the depth of Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein” at the time but said he had discussed some “concerns” he had about the former minister, as well as his “perceived attributes,” during conversations with No. 10.

“I apologize for the role I played in Peter Mandelson’s appointment and I deeply regret that he was ever appointed in the first place,” he emphasized.

Mandelson said Starmer “lacks verve” in critical WhatsApp messages

A series of WhatsApp messages between Mandelson and Pat McFadden, then-Minister for Intergovernmental Relations, in May 2025 portray a dim view of Starmer’s leadership.

McFadden spoke with Mandelson—then serving as the U.K. ambassador to the U.S.—about the Labour Party’s losses in the local elections.

Discussing possible next steps and strategy, McFadden, who is now the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, said on May 2: “What do we actually do?”

To which Mandelson replied: “It stems from the top and Keir [Starmer] lacks verve, as does the Cabinet as a whole. People’s heads are broadly in the right place but you need more people who can execute.”

“The government needs visibly and tangibly to embrace knowledge and risk on everything that will help grow the economy,” he advised. “There is a large appetite for U.K. investment in the U.S… there is a lot of goodwill, but U.K. government engagement has become routinised and distant.”

Mandelson went on to say the government needs “more panache” and later suggested it could behave “in a more Trumpian risk-taking and daredevil way.”

Mandelson frustrated over Trump gift ahead of presidential visit to the U.K. 

Emails between government officials in the weeks prior to Trump’s visit to the U.K. in September 2025 appear to show some frustration from Mandelson over efforts to organize a gift for the President.

In an email dated Aug. 26, 2025, Olly Robbins, the former senior British civil servant who was effectively fired in April amid backlash over the appointment of Mandelson, tells Cabinet Office staff that “one of the gifts that would mean the most to the President would be a red dispatch box with the gold crest and lettering mimicking a U.K. Government Ministerial box but with ‘President of the United States’ inscribed upon it.”

Mandelson aired his frustrations over the debate about the box and how it had yet to be sorted with only a month to spare before Trump’s visit.

In an email addressed to Morgan McSweeney, the former Downing Street chief-of-staff who resigned in February after taking “full responsibility” for advising Starmer to appoint Mandelson, the former ambassador said: “This is like something out of Thick of it…I have gone tonto on this.”

The Thick of It was a British political satire that premiered in the mid 00s. “Tonto” is a British slang word meaning “crazy.”

Another message saw Mandelson complain about the “incompetence” as to how the gift was arranged, after he expressed concern that it might not be ready on time.

McSweeney told TIME he has no comment on the correspondence.

Mandelson appeared to push back on declaring his contacts with officials in foreign governments

As part of Mandelson’s security vetting that took place in January 2025 ahead of his stint as ambassador in Washington, the United Kingdom Security Vetting (USKV) asked him to complete a form “concentrating on current or recent contacts.”

The newly-released documents show that Mandelson replied by asking: “Do you mean literally every foreign national I have ever met? I assume not.” 

He continued: “Could you be a bit more specific about what sort of person, how far back, who I have done more than meet? Do you mean friends? Counterpart ministers? People in business?” 

The unnamed case assistant instructed Mandelson to “focus on the people who you have personal friendships with; have personal business connections to; family members that are not included elsewhere on the DV [Developed Vetting] questionnaire,” reaffirming that they were focusing on those who Mandelson had current or recent contact with. 

Mandelson later sought advice from an unnamed junior official, who told him: ”I suggest you send over the handful of names you mentioned, even though you don’t consider them ‘close contacts.’ That will reassure the vetting team that you’ve been comprehensive, even if it’s all quite artificial.”

Mandelson described Downing Street as “beleaguered and bereft”

Months after his criticism of Starmer, the former ambassador presented an even more sombre assessment of Downing Street to McFadden. 

In WhatsApp messages from July 30, 2025, Mandelson said: “I went into No. 10 after I saw you. It is beleaguered and bereft. It requires complete revamp and infusion of purpose and confidence to get anywhere.”

Reflecting on staff in No. 10, Mandelson went on to argue: “They don’t work as a team, they are not led and none of them really know what Keir thinks or wants. In fact most of them don’t think Keir knows what he wants.”

Read More:
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Mandelson Says Being Ambassador Was ‘Privilege’ of His Life After Being Sacked Over Epstein Emails