Mandelson vetting scandal escalates

The Mandelson vetting row has plunged the Labour government into a deep crisis just months before crucial local elections.

Evidence has emerged that Starmer's chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, may have used 'bullying' tactics to bypass standard security protocols for the former ambassador to Washington.

Starmer has dismissed the allegations as 'politically motivated,' yet even some backbench Labour MPs have called for an independent probe into whether the Prime Minister misled Parliament.

The scandal has exposed significant tensions between the political leadership and the neutral civil service.