More Mandelson papers to be published before Christmas

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 5 Nov, 21:04 · Archive

The government will publish additional documents about Lord Mandelson's appointment as US ambassador before Parliament's Christmas recess.

The government is preparing to publish more documents about Lord Mandelson's appointment as US ambassador before Parliament rises for Christmas recess on 17 December. Batches of papers were already published in March and June following a parliamentary vote using a 'humble address' motion, but others were withheld because they were part of a Metropolitan Police investigation.

Cat Little, permanent secretary at the Cabinet Office, wrote to Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee that the Met Police has now assessed that some withheld documents 'can now be published without prejudicing their investigation'. The Cabinet Office is beginning the process to prepare these documents for publication, though some may need to be redacted to avoid prejudice to national security or international relations.

The Met Police investigation concerns allegations that, while serving as a government minister, Lord Mandelson passed on market-sensitive government information to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Mandelson was arrested on 23 February on suspicion of misconduct in public office. He has said he believes he has not acted criminally, did not act for personal gain and is cooperating with police. The Met said its investigation into the alleged misconduct is ongoing.

How it is being reported

• New tranche of Mandelson papers set to be published before ChristmasMore than 1,500 pages of documents have already been released but some had been held back to avoid prejudicing a Metropolitan Police investigation into allegations of misconduct in public officeThe Independent · 5 Nov, 20:32
• More Mandelson papers set to be published before ChristmasDocuments were published in March and June - but others were withheld because they were part of a police investigation.BBC Politics · 5 Nov, 20:02

In this story: Lord Mandelson · Jeffrey Epstein · Metropolitan Police · Cabinet Office · Cat Little · Parliament

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