00:00When a government is under pressure, private messages come out of far beyond Westminster.
00:06They give voters a glimpse of whether ministers and advisers feel confident in the way decisions are being made.
00:13The Mandelson files have reopened questions about one controversial appointment,
00:19but also about Sir Keir Starmer's authority, judgment and control of his own operation.
00:25Well, to start off, what it tells us is that politicians are human beings like everyone else,
00:30and there's a lot of sort of chit-chat and fluff, if you might sort of say.
00:34But of course, what is absolutely fascinating for sort of looking at these is the sort of the backbiting that
00:39goes on
00:40and what people really think of one another.
00:42What it also tells us is that Mandelson is a sort of particularly nasty piece of work,
00:46I think I'm safe to say that, insofar as that, of course, he's spent his whole life having sort of
00:51hot air blown up him,
00:52if I may use that expression, and clearly thinks that, of course, he's a Svengali who's more important than any
00:58of this lot,
00:58and people who sort of were fooling him, he was criticising behind their back to others.
01:03The papers cover communication linked to Peter Mandelson's appointment as ambassador to the United States.
01:09They include criticism of number 10, concern about the government's policy operation,
01:15and private anxiety about whether Starmer's authority could withstand political setbacks.
01:21Some messages described Downing Street as lacking purpose and needing a major reset.
01:27It's difficult, it's embarrassing. It does call into question Keir Starmer's judgement for sure,
01:32because even though the sort of the view is that it was more to do with Morgan McSweeney,
01:37who believed that Mandelson was the right man, of course, he had to get the sign off from his boss,
01:42Keir Starmer,
01:43and Keir Starmer should have had sort of greater oversight of what was going on.
01:46And let's face it, when we're talking about Keir Starmer, this is not a man who has not had a
01:51sort of a colourful reputation,
01:52to say the least, in the past, being sacked from government.
01:55So there was a lot of sort of background noise to this, and indeed, as we've sort of since discovered,
02:00this is a man that clearly couldn't be trusted, and indeed, of course, that is still ongoing.
02:05So I think it's damaging, and Starmer will obviously be sort of displeased about this.
02:11But hey, it's probably sort of no more than we sort of expected that sort of went on behind the
02:16scenes.
02:16The appointment itself is also under renewed scrutiny.
02:21Mandelson later lost the ambassadorial role after questions over his links to Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender.
02:30He denies wrongdoing, and some material has been withheld because police are examining separate allegations of misconduct in public office.
02:40The government says publishing the file shows transparency.
02:44Its critics say the papers point to problems with judgment, vetting, and discipline.
02:49Well, the view was that sort of Mandelson was somebody who could do business with Trump.
02:55Now, whether that was ever going to be true is questionable, because I don't think anybody can sort of redo
02:59business with Trump.
03:01But Mandelson was probably the sort of the best person they've certainly believed, particularly Morgan McSweeney.
03:08So he was put up as the sort of the right man to sort of go and do the deals,
03:12which, of course, I understand the sort of the real politic is to try and sort of keep jobs or
03:17keep the sort of the business coming into the sort of the UK,
03:19particularly in terms of sort of making exports to the U.S. and sort of the whole sort of aspect
03:23of tariffs.
03:24And maybe Mandelson might have been able to do that.
03:26For sure, it's not good.
03:28You know, what we're sort of finding about the sort of the machinations of government behind the scenes, the sort
03:32of the private chit chat,
03:33it undermines his authority.
03:35And, of course, authority is something that you absolutely have to have in the role of prime minister,
03:39because, of course, you haven't got that.
03:40You've got nothing.
03:42It's really difficult because, of course, Starmer was seen, if you like, as an heir apparent of Blair, even by
03:48Mandelson.
03:48But, of course, Mandelson, when I sort of discovered from the sort of the private messages, didn't sort of rate
03:53him who he would do.
03:55That's an open question.
03:56Probably, I suppose, he expected that because he might get the call and get the job.
03:59I'm being flippant.
04:01But, of course, that's the sort of the eager maniac or maniacal character of Mandelson.
04:06Whether we sort of see a sort of hastening, of course, everything depends upon the certain Andy Burnham,
04:10who, of course, if he wins the election in Makerfield in a few weeks' time, then, yeah, then, of course,
04:16that might sort of hasten it.
04:17But the difficulty is that sort of, you know, until we've got that by-election out of the way, Starmer
04:22is sort of seen, if you like.
04:23It's almost like a hostage.
04:25There's nothing he can do.
04:25He's not going to jump this side, I think.
04:28And, of course, if Burnham doesn't win, then we're into a sort of summer of uncertainty,
04:32which, of course, is not good for the political party that is the Labour group.
04:36But, more particularly, it's not good for the UK because, of course, we need to have that sort of ability
04:41to reach out,
04:42do the trade deals and also sort of protect the jobs.
04:44And, of course, as we know, because of the economic circumstances caused by Donald Trump and Iran,
04:49things are going to get more difficult, not easier.
04:52The pressure now turns on whether this remains a damaging episode about one appointment
04:57or becomes part of a wider argument about Sir Keir Starmer's leadership.
05:02Ministers will want to show the papers draw a line under the issue.
05:06Opponents argue they raise bigger questions about judgment, discipline and control at the centre of our government.
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