PM says he is ‘furious’ and did not know security officials had recommended that Mandelson be denied clearance
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Keir Starmer has said it was “unforgivable” that he was not told that Peter Mandelson had failed his security vetting before being appointed as ambassador to Washington.
The prime minister said he was “furious” about what had happened, as he insisted he had not known that security officials had initially recommended that Mandelson be denied clearance.
Speaking on Friday morning for the first time since the Guardian broke the story, Starmer said: “That I wasn’t told that Peter Mandelson had failed security vetting when he was appointed is staggering.
