Wes Streeting has told friends his leadership ambitions will not be killed off when his private messages with Peter Mandelson are revealed.
Political rivals have suggested that the Health Secretary could be ‘finished’ if compromising messages exchanged with the disgraced Labour peer are published as part of a government data dump.
But an ally said last night that only a ‘handful of messages’ were involved and none contain anything ‘particularly embarrassing’.
A parliamentary vote this week forced the Government to release all documents and messages relating to Keir Starmer‘s disastrous decision to appoint Mandelson as US ambassador despite his links to Jeffrey Epstein.
The wide-ranging order is expected to involve the release of tens of thousands of documents, including all messages exchanged between Mandelson and ministers and special advisers during his stint in the US.
In the coming days, ministers will be asked to hand over details of their exchanges with Mandelson while he was ambassador, including emails, texts, voice notes and WhatsApps.
Mr Streeting, who is among the favourites to succeed Sir Keir if the PM is forced to quit, was a political ally of Mandelson for years.
Rivals believe the publication of his messages with Mandelson could destroy his hopes of becoming PM. One Labour source said: ‘Wes was close to Mandelson for years – he cannot escape from that, which means he cannot run [for leader] in the current climate.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has told friends his leadership ambitions will not be killed off when his private messages with Peter Mandelson are revealed
Mr Streeting, who is among the favourites to succeed Sir Keir if the PM is forced to quit, was a political ally of Mr Mandelson (pictured) for years
‘There is every chance these messages will show he was plotting with Mandelson and badmouthing the PM and other colleagues. If that’s the case, then he is finished.’
But an ally of Mr Streeting dismissed the claim. An audit of his messages is said to have mostly focused on health policy and the US. ‘People positioning themselves to run for leader are trying to drag Wes into this, but it is not going to work,’ the ally said.
The Daily Mail revealed yesterday that Mr Streeting had deleted online photographs of him with Mandelson.
But allies insist they were not as close as some suggest.
This week’s Commons order, masterminded by Kemi Badenoch, triggered panic in Whitehall. Officials believe more than 100,000 files could be released. The Cabinet Office is collating the material but the Met Police wants ‘certain documents’ to be withheld in case they undermine an inquiry into claims Mandelson gave Epstein market-sensitive government information.
Sir Keir had wanted the document release to be run by the government but, following a Labour revolt led by Angela Rayner, Parliament’s intelligence and security committee (ISC) will decide what is published.
In a letter to the ISC last night, Sir Keir pledged to work with MPs to deliver the publication of documents surrounding Mandelson’s appointment with ‘urgency and transparency’.
Yesterday, Neil Duncan-Jordan became the latest Labour MP to call for Sir Keir to go. He said the party needed ‘renewal’, adding: ‘That means changing who’s in charge.’
A colleague said of Sir Keir: ‘He’s done. He’s not coming back from this.’