Pressure mounted on Keir Starmer on Monday as Britain’s prime minister struggled to contain the political fallout from his government’s links to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a crisis now threatening the stability of his premiership.
Starmer is facing mounting anger in parliament over his decision to appoint Peter Mandelson as the UK’s ambassador to the United States, despite Mandelson’s documented past association with Epstein. Opposition figures and some Labour lawmakers have demanded Starmer take responsibility, with calls for his resignation growing louder.
The controversy deepened after Starmer’s chief of staff and longtime confidant, Morgan McSweeney, resigned on Sunday. McSweeney had advised the prime minister on the Mandelson appointment, leaving Starmer without his closest political shield at a critical moment.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the situation was “untenable,” arguing that while advisers offer guidance, ultimate responsibility lies with the prime minister. “He made a bad decision,” she said, “and he should take responsibility for that.”
The crisis marks the most serious challenge of Starmer’s 18-month tenure. Already weakened by repeated policy reversals since taking office in July 2024, Starmer now faces dire polling numbers, with surveys showing him to be the most unpopular prime minister in modern British history.
The row reignited after the U.S. Justice Department released new Epstein-related documents on January 30, allegedly indicating that Mandelson shared confidential UK government information with Epstein while serving as a minister, including during the 2008 financial crisis. British police are investigating Mandelson for possible misconduct in public office and raided two of his properties last week. He has not been arrested.
Starmer dismissed Mandelson from his post last September, saying he had been misled during the vetting process. He has since apologised publicly to Epstein’s victims, but the damage has spread across his party, with Labour trailing the hard-right Reform UK by double digits in recent polls ahead of key local elections in May.
With no clear successor emerging inside Labour, senior figures have rallied behind Starmer for now. But the Epstein fallout has exposed deep vulnerabilities at the heart of his leadership — and raised new questions about how much longer he can hold on.
