Parliament Blocks Move to Investigate Starmer Over Mandelson

The British Parliament has rejected a motion to investigate Prime Minister Keir Starmer over allegations that he misled MPs regarding the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US.

Mandelson was appointed to the post in late 2024 but was later removed by Starmer after deeper links to Jeffrey Epstein came to light. Starmer defended himself by saying he had been misled by Mandelson and that key information had not been provided to him during the vetting process.

The motion was defeated by 335 votes to 223. Starmer described the opposition initiative as politically motivated ahead of upcoming elections.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the prime minister had shown weakness by having to intervene and discipline his own MPs.

(reuters, pir)