This photograph taken in Le-Perreux-sur-Marne, outside Paris on February 9, 2026 shows undated pictures provided by the US Department of Justice on January 30, 2026 as part of the Jeffrey Epstein files. US authorities on January 30, 2026, released the latest cache of files related to the investigation into the late conviceted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The files contained references to numerous high-profile figures. (Photo by Martin BUREAU / AFP via Getty Images) Editor’s Note: This story contains discussions of child abuse that may be disturbing. Reader discretion is advised. If you suspect a child is being abused, find out how to report it in your state here. To connect with a counselor, you can call the National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4253.
(NewsNation) — Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party in the U.K., Sir Keir Starmer, has resigned this week due in part to his appointment of Jeffrey Epstein associate, Lord Peter Mandelson, former U.K. ambassador to the United States.
Starmer never met Epstein, although many government officials questioned his judgment for appointing a known friend of Epstein’s.
Shadow CDL (Cabinet Office) and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Alex Burghart, has been a vocal critic of the now-resigned Prime Minister’s decision-making, calling for his resignation in April, and claimed he misled Parliament regarding Mandelson.
The Department of Justice’s release of the Epstein Files revealed pages of correspondence between Mandelson and the now-deceased disgraced financier.
Mandelson served in the role from February 2025 to September 2025. The now former prime minister terminated Mandelson after the DOJ files showed that the ex-ambassador and the sex trafficker maintained contact after Epstein pled guilty to sexual solicitation of a minor in 2008.
Names appearing in the Justice Department’s Epstein library of investigative documents do not indicate a crime was committed. In the U.S., only co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell has been convicted of a crime tied to Epstein. Maxwell is serving a 20-year federal prison sentence.
What the Epstein files say about Mandelson
Mandelson’s name appears thousands of times in the DOJ’s library, including email correspondence between him and Epstein. In July 2009, Epstein wrote to Mandelson on the day he was released from jail, “Free and home.”
Mandelson said to Epstein, “How shall we celebrate?”
Epstein replied, “With grace and modesty ( those are the names of two strippers).”
Mandelson wrote, “How is freedom feeling?”
To which Epstein said, “She feels, fresh, firm, and creamy.”
Mandelson called Epstein a “naughty boy.”
On May 16, 2013, in an email, Epstein asked Mandelson if he “met with Putin.”
In another email exchange dated Nov. 11, 2011, Mandelson asked Epstein, “Buy anything in Greece?”
Epstein replied, “Yes, but very greecy.” Then, Mandelson implored, “Need a Lord on the board?”
Lesley Groff, Epstein’s longtime executive assistant, communicated with her then-employer regarding Mandelson’s travel plans in December 2010.
“FYI-I have a reminder that Peter Mandelson might come to NY Dec. 12-14. I checked with him last week on this and his response: Still an option. Will discuss with J over weekend. But he has ideas about going to Africa early and staying over Xmas…,” the email written by Groff stated.
Oversight Committee wants answers from Mandleson about Epstein
The House Oversight Committee requested that Mandleson be interviewed regarding his ties to Epstein on February 13, 2026.
In the letter from Democrats Rep. Robert Garcia and Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, lawmakers stated Mandelson was noted in Epstein’s infamous 50th Birthday Book, in which the former ambassador called him his “best pal.”
It stated bank records showed Epstein sent Mandelson sizable amounts of money, including $75,000 in payments between 2003 and 2004. It also accused him of messaging the disgraced financier with insider trading information in 2010 before the U.K. announced a “€500 billion deal to strengthen the shared currency, noting ‘sources tell me 500 b euro bailout’ is almost complete.”
Lawmakers also accused Mandelson of staying in Epstein’s Manhattan apartment in 2009 while Epstein served his solicitation sentence in Florida. Additionally, the letter claimed, “A photo of you was included in the DOJ’s partial release of Epstein-related documents.6 The photo appears to depict you in your underwear alongside an unidentified woman.”
A rep for Lord Mandelson did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.
The BBC reported Mandelson has repeatedly stated he believes he did not engage in criminal activity.
Epstein died of an apparent suicide in 2019 in his jail cell.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
Diana Falzone is the senior national investigations reporter at NewsNation Digital, covering the federal government, warzones and top-level criminal investigations.
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