Mandelson Failed Security Vetting: What Happens Next?
Newscast
BBC
4.3 • 6.6K Ratings
🗓️ 18 April 2026
⏱️ 37 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Laura and Paddy are back! Today, they’re discussing the key questions facing Sir Keir Starmer over the latest revelations about Lord Mandelson
Sir Olly Robbins, the former chief Foreign Office official, was ousted by Starmer on Thursday after it was revealed that Mandelson had failed the foreign office vetting programme. The key questions are still to be answered formally over who knew what, and when.
The PM is set to appear in the Commons on Monday, and Olly Robbins is expected to be grilled by MPs on Tuesday. But how exactly did we get here? What are the key questions Starmer and Robbins need to answer? And could this be the final nail in the coffin for Keir Starmer’s premiership?
You can now listen to Newscast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Newscast”. It works on most smart speakers. You can join our Newscast online community here: https://bbc.in/newscastdiscord
Get in touch with Newscast by emailing newscast@bbc.co.uk or send us a WhatsApp on +44 0330 123 9480.
New episodes released every day. If you're in the UK, for more News and Current Affairs podcasts from the BBC, listen on BBC Sounds: https://bbc.in/4guXgXd Newscast brings you daily analysis of the latest political news stories from the BBC. The presenters were Laura Kuenssberg and Paddy O'Connell. It was made by Rufus Gray with Kris Jalowiecki. The social producer was Sophie Millward. The technical producer was Rohan Madison. The assistant editor is Chris Gray. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Well, we're back after two weeks and nothing's happened. |
| 0:08.6 | It's even more of a mess. I mean, I feel that we depart for a fortnight. We turn our backs for a few short moments and we come back to another gigantic mind-melting mess. |
| 0:19.6 | So we thank all the newscasters who've been listening assiduously to newscasts all covering |
| 0:24.8 | the crises plural. |
| 0:26.4 | Yes. |
| 0:26.6 | We are in a way humbly coming back into your earbuds because we're just offering the |
| 0:31.3 | Saturday newscast, but I have a feeling it's going to be dominated by Starmageddon. |
| 0:36.8 | I think it will because yet again Starmageddon is unfolding in front of our eyes, |
| 0:42.7 | yet again, as one senior MP said to me, |
| 0:45.5 | oh no, here we go again, because of the saga around Kirstarmer's original decision |
| 0:53.1 | many, many months ago to give one Peter |
| 0:55.9 | Mandelson the plum job of being Britain's ambassador to the United States. And the big question |
| 1:01.4 | is what will happen next. And that's what we'll be talking about on this Saturday newscast. |
| 1:07.2 | Newscast from the BBC. Humanity's next great voyage begins. |
| 1:11.9 | We are in the midst of a rupture. |
| 1:13.8 | Nostalgia will not bring back the old order. |
| 1:16.6 | Six-seven. |
| 1:18.2 | Yeah. |
| 1:18.6 | It's supposed to be me as a doctor. |
| 1:20.4 | Daddy has also a special connotation. |
| 1:22.5 | Ooh-la-la-law. |
| 1:23.2 | Thinking about it like a panto helped. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.