Mandelson lied repeatedly to my team and I regret appointing him as ambassador, Starmer says
Starmer says ‘highly sensitive’ information won’t be released with Mandelson vetting detailspublished at 12:19 GMT
Badenoch says it is “shocking” to hear the prime
minister admit that his teams knew about Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein.
She says this is why the Conservatives are calling on the
government to release all documents relating to Mandelson’s appointment as US
ambassador, “not just the ones the government wants us to see”.
She accuses Starmer of trying to “sabotage” the Tory
motion to release the files with a “whitewash amendment”, adding: “Labour MPs now have to decide if they
want to be accessories to his cover-up.”
She asks Starmer to guarantee that he won’t remove the whip
from MPs who vote against the amendment.
Starmer replies that there must be an exemption on release of information in relation to anything that could compromise national security.
“To vote to release something that would prejudice
national security is wrong in principle,” he says.
The PM adds that “things that would prejudice international relations” will also be exempt, including information on intelligence and trade that
are “highly sensitive”.
He emphasises that the
process for deciding what falls into these categories is not “a political
process” and instead led by the cabinet secretary.
He mentions again that Downing Street is also in
conversations with the Met Police about making sure any release doesn’t
prejudice their investigation.
