Chief of Staff Resigns as Pressure Mounts on Keir Starmer Over Epstein-Linked Appointee

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government is reeling after his chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, resigned Sunday amid growing fury over the appointment of a disgraced ambassador linked to convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The scandal has triggered internal rebellion within the Labour Party and placed Starmer’s leadership under serious threat.

The resignation follows the release of U.S. Justice Department files exposing the depths of former UK Ambassador Peter Mandelson’s ties to Epstein details that were allegedly known by Starmer’s inner circle when Mandelson was appointed to represent Britain in Washington in December 2024.

Emails made public in the DOJ’s Epstein files show Mandelson communicating with Epstein long after his first conviction for sex crimes involving minors. Some of those messages reportedly included confidential information during the 2008 financial crisis. Records also show Epstein paid Mandelson $75,000 between 2003 and 2004.

Now under police investigation, Mandelson has been forced to resign from both the House of Lords and the Labour Party.

In a striking statement, McSweeney admitted fault for backing the ambassador’s appointment:

“The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself. When asked, I advised the Prime Minister to make that appointment and I take full responsibility for that advice.”

While Starmer attempted to praise McSweeney’s loyalty and role in Labour’s electoral resurgence, the damage may already be done. Even members of Starmer’s cabinet are questioning his ability to survive the political firestorm.

• Mandelson’s name appeared over a dozen times in Epstein’s files, including after Epstein’s conviction.

• He was dismissed as ambassador in 2025, but only after initial pushback over his continued presence.

• Starmer’s own party now says the prime minister, not McSweeney, must answer for the scandal.

Cabinet Minister Pat McFadden stated bluntly: “It’s a prime ministerial appointment. And prime ministers have to take responsibility for the decisions they make.”

That sentiment is rapidly gaining traction within the Labour ranks. Many see McSweeney’s resignation not as resolution, but as an attempt to shield Starmer from the fallout of a catastrophic lapse in judgment one that now carries legal and political consequences.

Let’s not forget: Mandelson wasn’t an obscure bureaucrat. He was a known figure with a controversial past and well-documented ties to one of the most prolific abusers in modern history. Yet Starmer handed him the keys to the UK’s most important diplomatic post anyway.

This isn’t just a political scandal it’s a moral failure, and it should cost Starmer his job.

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