The previous civil servant who oversaw the approval of Peter Mandelson’s appointment as Britain’s ambassador to Washington has mentioned he felt “political stress” to fast-track the choice regardless of “safety issues.“Olly Robbins, the previous head of the Overseas Workplace was dismissed by Prime Minister Keir Starmer final week amid a widening scandal that has prompted requires the prime minister’s resignation. Mandelson was faraway from his submit in September final yr, simply 9 months into the job, after additional particulars emerged about his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted US intercourse offender who died in jail in 2019.“There was an environment of stress from the Prime Minister’s workplace and a really, very sturdy expectation that Mandelson wanted to be in submit and in America as rapidly as potential,” Robbins instructed the Home of Commons Overseas Affairs Committee on Tuesday, a day after Starmer was questioned by MPs over how the appointment was accredited.“There was a usually dismissive angle towards the safety vetting course of,” he added.Robbins additional acknowledged that the vetting company thought-about Mandelson a “borderline case” and was “leaning towards recommending in opposition to” giving him safety clearance. Nevertheless, the Overseas Workplace gave the clearance anyway.He clarified that the “safety issues” weren’t associated to Mandelson’s friendship with Epstein. He additionally declined to say when questioned by lawmakers what led the federal government’s vetting company to flag Mandelson as a possible safety danger.For his half, Starmer has acknowledged that the appointment was a “mistake” and mentioned he would have reconsidered it had he been conscious of the vetting issues. Nevertheless, he has positioned duty on Overseas Workplace officers, accusing them of failing to tell him concerning the points and of continuing with the approval regardless of them.He described it as “frankly staggering” that he was not instructed concerning the failed safety verify carried out in January 2025, insisting he solely realized of it final week.(With AP inputs)