Britain’s new ambassador to the US hosted a welcome bash last night – at the same time as his predecessor Lord Peter Mandelson was being held in custody.
Sir Christian Turner is said to have served guests fish and chips and ‘Turner Tonic’ cocktails on his official debut as the UK’s top diplomat in Washington DC.
But the timing of Monday night’s reception – held at the ambassador’s residence at 3100 Massachusetts Avenue – proved awkward as it came as Lord Mandelson was still being quizzed by police in London.
The former Labour peer, who was sacked as Britain’s ambassador to the US in September last year, was held for around nine hours on Monday following his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
At around 1.15am on Tuesday, the 72-year-old was pictured as he was driven out of Wandsworth Police Station after being released on bail.
He has been accused of passing sensitive information onto paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein during his time as business secretary in Gordon Brown’s government.
Sir Christian was appointed by the Prime Minister in December to fill the vacancy left by Lord Mandelson’s dramatic exit from Washington DC.
He formally took up the role at the beginning of this month and he was recently pictured presenting his credentials to US President Donald Trump.
Sir Christian Turner, Britain’s new ambassador to the US, formally took up the role at the beginning of this month and was recently pictured presenting his credentials to Donald Trump
Lord Mandelson was held for around nine hours on Monday following his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office
According to The Times, Sir Christian told guests on Monday night how Mr Trump ‘gave me this rather lovely hat’, before he took out a red MAGA hat which read: ‘America is back!’.
‘But he slightly confused me, because I also have this hat,’ the ambassador continued, taking out a ‘Make Wales Great Again’ hat.
Sir Christian is reported to have gone on to describe the US-UK relationship as an ‘indispensable partnership’, adding: ‘We must not disregard everything that has sustained us for 80 years. Instead, we must build on it.
‘We must find new ways to uphold our values, and the rule of law, and we must make this a moment of radical renewal.’
In his address, the ambassador was also revealed to have gently rebuked Trump allies over their comments about free speech in Britain and crime rates in London.
‘Someone once defined a diplomat as ‘someone who tells you how to go to hell in such a way as you want to ask for directions’,’ he is said to have told guests.
‘I will try and live up to that, but in the family-friendly version of the expression, I’m also here to ‘get stuff done’. I will try and do that. I won’t shy from debate.
‘I will tell you why London is the safest city in the G7 – fact – why we’re not curtailing free speech – fact – and I want to hear how you see it too.’
In a statement issued just after 2am on Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said: ‘A 72-year-old man arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office has been released on bail pending further investigation.
‘He was arrested at an address in Camden on Monday, 23 February and was taken to a London police station for interview.
‘This follows search warrants at two addresses in the Wiltshire and Camden areas.
‘We are not able to provide further information at this stage to prevent prejudicing the integrity of the investigation.’
Footage showed Lord Mandelson being led out of his house by a plain clothes police officer on Monday.
Two of the peer’s properties were previously searched by police in connection with the allegations, which surfaced following the US Department of Justice’s document dump related to Epstein last month.
As part of the so-called ‘Epstein files’, emails from 2009 appear to show Lord Mandelson pass on an assessment by Mr Brown’s adviser of potential policy measures including an ‘asset sales plan’.
He also appeared to discuss a tax on bankers’ bonuses and confirm an imminent bailout package for the euro the day before it was announced in 2010.
The emails appeared to be sent to Epstein after he became a convicted sex offender.
It is understood the Crown Prosecution Service is yet to offer any early investigative advice in relation to the allegations against Lord Mandelson.
The Cabinet Office previously referred material to police in connection with the probe into Lord Mandelson after an initial review of the Epstein files suggested ‘safeguards were compromised’.
Lord Mandelson has denied the Epstein files show he broke any laws or acted for personal gain. He has repeatedly said he regrets his friendship with Epstein.