Former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said the scandal involving Peter Mandelson is a serious challenge for Prime Minister Keir Starmer, though he described Starmer as a man of integrity who was betrayed by his former ally.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4 on Saturday, Brown said Starmer may have been too slow to act after allegations emerged that Mandelson passed sensitive government information to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. However, he said Starmer remained the right leader to reform Britain’s political system and restore trust.
Brown’s comments came as London’s Metropolitan Police concluded searches of two properties linked to Mandelson as part of an investigation into alleged misconduct in public office. Mandelson, a former business secretary and later UK ambassador to the United States, has denied any criminal wrongdoing and says he was not motivated by financial gain.
Brown said the situation was serious and warned that failure to address corruption and unethical conduct would carry heavy political costs. He added that Starmer now needed to act decisively and should be judged by his actions in the coming months.
Email exchanges released in the latest batch of Epstein-related documents suggest Mandelson shared internal government information with Epstein. This included details about the UK’s struggling economy, a memo discussing the sale of government assets and advance notice of a major European Union bailout during the eurozone crisis.
The emails also show Mandelson giving frequent political updates to Epstein in the days after Labour lost power in the 2010 general election.
Brown said he felt shocked and betrayed by the disclosures, arguing that Mandelson’s actions may have put Britain’s economy and currency at risk. He said speculative trading could have been triggered by the leaked information, causing serious commercial damage.
He also said the emails suggested Mandelson was planning his post-government career while still serving as business secretary during the global financial crisis, describing this as a betrayal of his colleagues and the country.
Brown called on Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who also appears in the Epstein files, to cooperate fully with authorities investigating Epstein’s crimes. He said the case exposed a global network of powerful individuals who believed they were above the law.
The former prime minister renewed his call for sweeping political reforms, including the creation of an anti-corruption commission with powers to seize assets. He also urged the government to implement tougher vetting for senior appointments, introduce public confirmation hearings and strengthen oversight of ethics in public life.
On Saturday, the Metropolitan Police said searches had been carried out at addresses in Wiltshire and north London as part of an ongoing investigation involving a 72-year-old man. No arrest has been made and inquiries are continuing.
With inputs from BBC