What really happened with Peter Mandelson, and how Olly Robbins did PM two favours

What do I think really happened with Mandelson and vetting?

In October, November and December 2024, Number 10 indicated it wanted to appoint Peter Mandelson as Ambassador to Washington.

It was presented with an array of people telling them not to: Cabinet ministers, spooks, officials in a vetting report. All raised major red flags.

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Sir Keir Starmer and former aide Morgan McSweeney made clear they were not interested in any objection, and this must go ahead at all costs.

So Mandelson's appointment was announced in mid-December 2024.

The vetting we are focused on today came later, in January 2025. Vetting of ambassadors is the responsibility of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and - now former - permanent under-secretary Olly Robbins.

One bit of the system said no - the United Kingdom Security Vetting agency said do not appoint Mandelson.

We do not know on what grounds, but probably the grounds that Number 10 had seen and rejected as a reason to block.

Olly Robbins cleared Mandelson. Very quietly, Mandelson did not get the very highest level of clearance when he got the job, but got the overall OK because of Robbins. Robbins did Number 10 a favour.

This is because Olly Robbins knew that going to Number 10 post-announcement, and saying the Mandelson appointment cannot happen, was politically impossible.

And civil servants want to deliver for their political masters. So Olly fixed it for Keir and is now paying a price.

Olly Robbins has - incidentally - done Number 10 a second massive political favour.

The really, really toxic claim doing the rounds on Thursday night was that surely someone - anyone - in Number 10 DID know the UKSV agency turned down the vetting.

Olly Robbins is making clear he did not tell people the UKSV verdict because that would be inappropriate as part of the process he followed. It's not even clear he saw it.

Number 10 does not seem to realise he has done them a favour, and is releasing documents to challenge alternative versions of events. Let's see how it plays out.

The bottom line is that Number 10 wanted Mandelson come what may. They rammed it through.

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One quango, post-appointment announcement, was never realistically going to be allowed to stop Mandelson taking the job because the top of government had publicly committed to it.

They had not wanted to heed the warnings earlier, and were in too deep.

That's where I think we are.

(c) Sky News 2026: What really happened with Peter Mandelson, and how Olly Robbins did PM two favours