Mandelson, Epstein and the fight for survival at No 10
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 6 February 2026
⏱️ 35 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The fallout from the latest tranche of the Epstein files is causing chaos in Westminster. With his ex-US ambassador Peter Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein under the microscope, Labour MPs are furiously asking what Keir Starmer knew about it, and when. So will the PM be able to ride out this latest storm? And what future does Mandelson have?
This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory
Guest: Steven Swinford, political editor, The Times.
Host: Manveen Rana.
Producers: Harry Stott, Sophie McNulty.
We want to hear from you - email: thestory@thetimes.com
Read more:
- Starmer says sorry. But why did he swallow Mandelson’s lies?
- I studied the latest Epstein files. As a woman, this is what I felt
Further listening:
Clips: Associated Press, Times Radio, BBC
Photo: Getty Images.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | From the Times and the Sunday Times, this is the story. I'm Manvien Rana. |
| 0:10.2 | When the US Department of Justice finally released more than 3 million documents from the Epstein files, nobody expected them to |
| 0:23.2 | land like a ticking time bomb right in the middle of Westminster. |
| 0:28.3 | Mandelson betrayed our country, our parliament and my party. He lied repeatedly to my team. If I knew then, what I know now, he would never have been |
| 0:41.8 | anywhere near government. All week, a furious Kirstearner has had to distance himself from the man |
| 0:48.9 | he'd appointed as his ambassador to Washington. And yesterday, even though he never even met Jeffrey Epstein, |
| 0:56.0 | he became the first world leader to apologize to his victims. |
| 1:01.0 | I am sorry. |
| 1:03.0 | Sorry for what was done to you. |
| 1:06.0 | Sorry that so many people with power failed you. |
| 1:10.0 | Sorry for having believed Mandelson's lies and appointed him. |
| 1:15.5 | But will that be enough? |
| 1:17.3 | For even his own backbenchers who are in a mutinous mood. |
| 1:20.9 | I think the mood yesterday was the angriest, I think, I've ever seen Labour MPs in the 16 years that I've been in Parliament. |
| 1:29.6 | We can't pretend that this is not a crisis situation. |
| 1:33.1 | I think the PM is up against it. |
| 1:35.8 | I was disappointed, I was sickened and quite frankly I think the country deserves better. |
| 1:42.9 | It could well mark the end of the Prime Minister's time in office, yes, I think so. |
| 1:47.3 | Will the Jeffrey Epstein scandal bring down Kier Stama? |
| 1:50.8 | How much did he know about Peter Mandelson's continued friendship with a convicted pedophile |
| 1:55.9 | before appointing him as ambassador? |
| 2:06.8 | And after 40 years in politics, a number of scandals and dramatic comebacks, |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The Times, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of The Times and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.