Mandelson revelations show need for tougher UK constraints to resist rule of the rich | Heather Stewart
Peter Mandelson’s personal disgrace is deep and unique, and may yet bring down a prime minister – but by laying bare the dark allure of the “filthy rich”, it also underlines the need for tougher constraints on money in politics,It is hard to know what system or process could have shielded sensitive government decisions from the risk that a senior cabinet minister might nonchalantly pass on the details to a friend, the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein,But Epstein’s efforts to influence government policy – working to water down Alistair Darling’s bonus tax at a time when the banks had crashed the British economy, for example – underline the powerful forces with which politicians are faced,One bulwark against this is the expectation that most will display a probity and strength of character Mandelson clearly lacked,The Bank of England governor, Andrew Bailey, spoke for many on Thursday when he unfavourably compared the disgraced Mandelson with the late Alistair Darling.
Describing the former chancellor as having “a thorough sense of honesty and decency”, Bailey appeared too emotional to finish the sentence that began: “To see those pictures of Peter Mandelson with Alistair Darling …” but all of us present at the press conference took the point.Unfortunately, when it comes to money and politics – whether post-parliamentary employment, lobbying or party funding – the revelations are a reminder that it is unwise to take honesty and decency as a given.Keir Starmer is reportedly furious with Mandelson, but the decision to appoint him was consistent with his administration’s tendency to blur the lines between business and politics.From allowing the Labour donor Waheed Alli a pass to No10, to hiring senior aides who continued to hold shares in lobbying companies, Starmer’s preference for competence over ideology sometimes appears to have blinded him to potential conflicts of interest.As Gordon Brown pointed out in the Guardian this weekend, it now behoves the prime minister to “let in the light”.
Taking life after politics first, it is clear from the Epstein emails that laying the groundwork for a lucrative future career was preoccupying Mandelson, even as Labour grappled with the global financial crisis.He was far from alone in parlaying his connections from his time in politics into cold hard cash.In just one example that became public, David Cameron bombarded former colleagues with messages on behalf of Greensill Capital, after allowing its founder, Lex Greensill, access to Downing Street while he was still prime minister.Labour promised in its manifesto to “review and update post-government employment rules to end flagrant abuses seen under the Conservatives”.It has taken the first step in this direction by announcing the abolition of the notoriously toothless Advisory Committee on Business Appointments and handing its job to the independent adviser on ministerial standards, Sir Laurie Magnus.
But so far no changes to the rules themselves have been announced – which the thinktank the Institute for Government called a “missed opportunity”,On lobbying, Labour has promised to tighten the restrictions on former politicians trying to influence the departments they once ran, and to make it harder for MPs to take up second jobs,Anti-corruption campaigners argue much more needs to be done, including forcing government departments to release more timely and detailed data about external meetings, and broadening the scope of the public lobbying register – which does not currently cover in-house corporate lobbyists, for example,The campaign group Spotlight on Corruption recently warned the current system is “full of major loopholes and gaps”,Finally there is the ability of big money donors to bankroll political parties and politicians.
Mandelson’s alleged receipt of direct payments from Epstein – which he has said he doesn’t recollect – is especially outrageous.But with no ceiling on party donations, it remains all too easy for wealthy individuals to buy outsized influence.Frank Hester, the healthcare tech entrepreneur whose unpleasant private views were uncovered by Guardian colleagues, gave the Tories £15m.Labour has promised an elections and democracy bill this parliament.Alongside lowering the voting age to 16, it will make important changes, including stopping shell companies being used as vehicles for donations, and obliging parties to assess whether there is a “risk of foreign interference,” attached to donations.
But it proposes no overall cap on individual donations and no ban on companies donating, either, as long as they can show they do business in the UK,Meanwhile, Nigel Farage had his recent £50,000 trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, to declare an end to the rules-based global order, paid for by an Iranian-born billionaire, Sasan Ghandehari, for whose family trust Farage – who hopes to be prime minister – is apparently an “honorary and unpaid adviser”,This does not appear to contravene any rule,Arguing that Labour’s promised changes do not go nearly far enough, the anti-corruption campaign Transparency International warned last summer: “We stand at the beginning of a new and dangerous era, where big money dominates in a way that has corroded US politics across the Atlantic,”The grim details of what Mandelson was willing to do for Epstein suggest that era may already have dawned – but it is not too late to pull up the drawbridge.
As Starmer fights for his political life, he could do worse than show he has learned the lessons of the political side of this scandal by introducing stringent new rules to protect British democracy from the malign influence of powerful companies, and dodgy billionaires.
Team GB dreams of Magic Monday and a hat-trick of Olympic medals
High in the Italian Alps, where the thin air and oxygen deprivation often does strange things to the brain, British accents have started whispering about the possibility of Magic Monday – and Team GB winning three medals in one day at these Winter Olympics.And the craziest thing of all? It’s not entirely out of the question.Late on Sunday evening, Mia Brookes, the 19-year-old British snowboarding superstar, dug herself out of a hole with the help of Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera and Judas Priest to qualify third for the Big Air final on Monday.Before then, Team GB’s mixed curling team of Bruce Mouat and Jen Dodds will play in their semi-final in the afternoon, knowing they are odds‑on favourites with the bookies having lost just one game, against Switzerland, in the group stages. Win their last-four encounter and they will guarantee a medal
Olympic figure skating music dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan resolved after ISU review
A politically charged dispute between the Olympic delegations of Azerbaijan and Armenia over figure skating music has been resolved after skating and IOC authorities reviewed the matter and the official program listing was amended.The International Skating Union (ISU) said in a statement to the Guardian on Sunday that it had examined the matter with relevant stakeholders. “The situation has been reviewed with all parties involved,” the ISU said. “The official names of the tracks that will be used are listed on the ISU website.”The change follows a complaint from Azerbaijan’s National Olympic Committee, which said it had raised concerns with the IOC over the Armenian pair of Karina Akopova and Nikita Rakhmanin’s planned short program to Artsakh, a composition by musician Ara Gevorgyan, who was born Yerevan, the capital of Armenia
Winter Olympics 2026: Vonn ‘stable’ after crash; luge, speed skating and more – as it happened
And that is me done for the night. Thanks for joining today and see you tomorrow for another packed day of Winter Olympics action! Leaving you on a bit of a cliff hanger with Team GB’s Mia Brookes yet to complete her final run in the women’s big air qualifiers. Fingers crossed!Lindsey Vonn was airlifted to hospital but is stable after crashing in the early stages of her women’s downhill run. The 41-year-old damaged her ACL when falling in a World Cup contest at Crans-Montana just over a week ago, but was determined to compete today. Starting as the 13th skier, Vonn clipped a gate and somersaulted off the course just seconds into her run
Trump calls Hunter Hess ‘a real loser’ for skier’s ambivalence about representing US
Donald Trump responded to Hunter Hess on Truth Social on Sunday, calling the Olympian a “real loser” and criticizing comments the US freestyle skier made in a press conference days earlier.Hess was asked in a press conference on Wednesday what it was like to represent the US in the Olympics given the current situation in the country, which has included ICE raids in Minnesota and a number of geopolitical crises. Hess said representing the US at the 2026 Winter Olympics brought up “mixed emotions” and that it was “a little hard.”“There’s obviously a lot going on that I’m not the biggest fan of, and I think a lot of people aren’t,” he said. “I think for me it’s more I’m representing my friends and family back home, the people that represented it before me, all the things that I believe are good about the US … Just because I’m wearing the flag doesn’t mean I represent everything that’s going on in the US
Feyi-Waboso a major doubt for rest of England’s Six Nations campaign
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso has been ruled out of England’s forthcoming pursuit of the triple crown and is a major doubt for the rest of the Six Nations tournament, while Steve Borthwick has fitness concerns over George Furbank and Ellis Genge as his team seek to end their Murrayfield hoodoo on Saturday.Feyi-Waboso pulled out of the 48‑7 victory against Wales 24 hours before kick-off after sustaining a hamstring injury and was replaced by Tom Roebuck. The Exeter winger will be out for “a number of weeks”, ensuring he misses the trip to Murrayfield and the visit of Ireland to Twickenham a week later. He has not yet been ruled out of England’s entire campaign but the chances of him appearing seem remote and he has been left out of the 36‑man squad called into camp on Sunday night.“Manny looks like he will be out for a number of weeks,” Borthwick said
‘It would have been a horrible one to lose’: Curran relieved after England’s Nepal scare
England flirted with one of the great T20 World Cup upsets in Mumbai before getting their campaign under way with victory against Nepal by four runs and, although they did not lose the game, Sam Curran insisted they had lost any sense of complacency.“We take those two points and take great confidence, because it wouldn’t have been a nice dressing room this evening,” said Curran, who conceded just five runs in the final over to decide the game.“I’ve played a lot of T20 cricket. When you win the close ones they’re actually the ones that give you a little boost and a bit of a smile on your face.“The associate nations are getting so much better
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