RismadarVoice Reporters
January 13, 2026
Former British Ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, has offered an “unequivocal” apology to the victims of Jeffrey Epstein for maintaining a friendship with the late US sex offender.
Mandelson, who faced criticism for failing to apologise during a Sunday broadcast interview, issued the statement on Monday following the backlash.
“I was wrong to believe him, following his conviction and to continue my association with him afterwards,” Mandelson said. “I apologise unequivocally for doing so to the women and girls who suffered.”
The apology comes four months after Prime Minister Keir Starmer dismissed Mandelson from his role as Britain’s top diplomat in Washington, after emails surfaced showing he had maintained contact with Epstein even after the American was convicted of child sex offences in 2008.
During the Sunday interview, Mandelson had described his conduct as “misplaced loyalty” and “a most terrible mistake on my part”, adding that Epstein had excluded him from the “sexual side” of his life because he was gay.
Mandelson, known as the “Prince of Darkness” during his years as a media adviser, was twice forced to resign from Tony Blair’s Labour government in the late 1990s and early 2000s over separate allegations of misconduct.
