Diane Abbott presses Keir Starmer over Peter Mandelson vetting

Diane Abbott directly challenged Prime Minister Keir Starmer, asking "Why didn't he ask" about Peter Mandelson's vetting when appointing him. Abbott cited Mandelson's two earlier forced resignations and public reporting of his connections to Jeffrey Epstein as reasons Starmer should have scrutinized Mandelson's suitability. Starmer replied, "I did ask, when...", framing his actions as procedural rather than acknowledging a substantive oversight. Labour figures say the vetting system now requires formal security clearance before appointments, which supporters argue will prevent similar issues going forward.