The silence of safeguarding minister Jess Phillips over the scandal engulfing Peter Mandelson around his relationship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein is ‘seriously concerning’, MPs have warned today.
Writing to Phillips, Conservatives Mims Davies, Alicia Kearns and Katie Lam raised concerns over a ‘pattern of behaviour at the top of Government’ which they say refuses to acknowledge Sir Keir Starmer‘s appointment of Mandelson.
The parliamentarians claimed she has failed to speak out on ‘the “best pal” of this most notorious paedophile’ being handed the ambassadorship to the US, despite being the ‘government’s voice for women and girls who have been victims of abuse’.
They also put pressure on the MP for Birmingham Yardley to confirm whether she still supports the Prime Minister in the wake of the scandal.
Shadow Home Office Minister Katie Lam told the Daily Mail that Phillips’ ‘silence is an insult to those she is meant to represent’ and challenged her to ‘come out of hiding and start standing up for victims’.
Fury has surrounded Starmer in recent days after he admitted in the House of Commons last Wednesday he had known that Mandelson had continued his friendship with Epstein after his conviction when he appointed him.
The Prime Minister claimed that Mandelson, who has since resigned his place in the House of Lords, ‘lied’ throughout the formal vetting process and presented Epstein as someone he barely knew.
Labour MPs were left fuming after it emerged Starmer had appointed him in spite of his admissions that he had been in touch with Epstein after the disgraced financier’s conviction for soliciting underage sex in 2008.
Safeguarding minister Jess Phillips has been accused of failing to speak out about the Prime Minister’s appointment of Jeffrey Epstein’s ‘best pal’ Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US
A photograph of Lord Mandelson talking to a woman wearing a white bath robe was released as part of the Epstein files
Sir Keir criticised the ‘vetting carried out independently by the security services’ on the disgraced Labour peer, suggesting the process needed to be looked at.
But critics pointed out he had already approved and announced Mandelson as the new ambassador to Washington before he was subject to in-depth national security vetting.
A two-page Cabinet Office propriety and ethics report compiled for Sir Keir before he gave Mandelson the US job revealed the peer had stayed at Epstein’s townhouse in 2009 while the financier was in prison.
There were also reports of Mandelson attending intimate gatherings at his Manhattan house from 2002 onwards.
And photos emerged of the pair celebrating a birthday at Epstein’s Paris apartment in 2007, by which time he had been arrested, charged and bailed over soliciting prostitution from a minor.
Other embarrassing photos which have since emerged as part of the Epstein files include Mandelson in his underwear at the paedophile’s home and him appearing to receive a foot massage from a woman.
After the Prime Minister apologised for making the appointment, Cabinet members rallied around him over the weekend.
However as many Labour backbenchers continue to criticise him, Ms Phillips has not entered the fray.
Writing to the safeguarding minister today, the three Tory MPs said: ‘As the Government’s voice for women and girls who have been victims of abuse and sexual violence, your ongoing silence over the past week has been seriously concerning.
‘Jeffrey Epstein’s appalling crimes included the abuse of women and girls as young as 14.
Fury has surrounded Starmer in recent days after he admitted in the House of Commons last Wednesday he had known that Mandelson had continued his friendship with Epstein after his conviction when he appointed him
‘There are serious questions surrounding the Prime Minister’s decision to overlook reports that Peter Mandelson continued his relationship with Epstein long after he was known to be a paedophile, and many victims will be looking to you for reassurance that their voices are being heard.
‘Many of these victims it’s reported were British, and it is understood that Epstein took almost 90 flights to or from the UK whilst this abuse was ongoing.
‘It seems there is now an emerging pattern of behaviour at the top of Government, with the Prime Minister also choosing to ignore Matthew Doyle’s connection to convicted paedophile Sean Morton when nominating him for a peerage.
‘Despite being mentioned by the Prime Minster at Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday and appearing at Home Office questions on Monday, you have not yet publicly addressed these issues or used your position to speak up for those affected.
‘You do not seem to have made a single reference, including in the House of Commons, to the Prime Minister’s decision to appoint the ‘best pal’ of this most notorious paedophile to the office of US Ambassador.’
They trio also asked for ‘urgent clarity’ on whether ‘the Prime Minister still retains your full support as his Safeguarding Minister’.
Shadow Home Office Minister Katie Lam added: ‘Jess Phillips needs to come out of hiding and start standing up for victims.
‘Her silence is an insult to those she is meant to represent. If she thinks the Prime Minister should go, she should have the courage to say so.
‘The public deserves to know what the Minister for Safeguarding is actually doing to tackle the Government’s growing problem with paedophile apologists.’
MPs across Parliament were left stunned after emails from the Epstein files, released by the US Department of Justice, appeared to show Mandelson sharing market sensitive and other confidential information with the paedophile.
A photograph of Peter Mandelson getting a foot massage from a young woman appeared in the files released by the US Department of Justice
Mandelson (pictured right, with Epstein) was sacked as ambassador to Washington in September last year, after Downing Street said new information about the depth of his relationship with Epstein had emerged
Mandelson was sacked as Britain’s ambassador to Washington in September last year, after Downing Street said new information about the depth of his relationship with Epstein had emerged.
Officers from the Metropolitan Police are investigating the claims, with searches carried out on two of Mandelson’s properties last week.
While he was a Cabinet minister the former spin doctor repeatedly leaked confidential government plans, emails seem to show.
One bombshell email seemingly showed the pair discussing confidential negotiations over a £10billion Ministry of Defence contract while Lord Mandelson was business secretary in Mr Brown’s government.
In another exchange, on the day Epstein was released from prison, the pair appeared to joke about celebrating with ‘two strippers’ – with Lord Mandelson branding his paedophile friend a ‘naughty boy’ for making the suggestion.
Others appeared to suggest Mandelson had received tens of thousands of pounds from Epstein, while his partner also received funding towards a training force. Mandelson has claimed to have no recollection of ever being given such sums.
A spokesman for Mandelson previously said: ‘Lord Mandelson regrets, and will regret until to his dying day, that he believed Epstein’s lies about his criminality.
‘Lord Mandelson did not discover the truth about Epstein until after his death in 2019.
‘He is profoundly sorry that powerless and vulnerable women and girls were not given the protection they deserved.’
Since the Mandelson emails came to light, Sir Keir has become embroiled in a second paedophile scandal after it emerged former Labour peer Matthew Doyle had been made a Lord despite having campaigned for a councillor who had been charged over indecent images of children.
Downing Street insisted it was not possible to stop the peerage once it had been announced on December 10, even though the PM read media reports of the allegations on December 28 – two weeks before it was formalised.
However, the Conservatives said Lords Clerks had told them that was not true.
Lord Doyle has apologised for campaigning for Sean Morton in 2017, and has resigned the Labour whip.
Jess Phillips has been contacted for comment.
A Home Office spokesperson said on Thursday night: ‘Our thoughts remain with the victims of Epstein, who have lived with unimaginable trauma, and we will do everything in our power to ensure accountability is delivered.
‘The Safeguarding Minister has dedicated her entire career to supporting survivors of sexual abuse and violence.
‘She is playing a leading role in the government’s pledge to halve violence against women and girls within a decade – deploying the full power of the state as part of the biggest crackdown in British history.’