Oh, how the mighty fall – and fall again! Peter Mandelson, the self-styled ‘Prince of Darkness’ of British politics, has just been booted out for the THIRD time in a career riddled with scandal, cronyism, and shameless self-dealing.
Mandelson booted out in latest in a timeline of sordid sackings
This Blairite baron, now 71, was sacked today (11 September) as UK’s ambassador to the US amid explosive revelations about his cosy ties to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Emails unearthed show Mandelson’s “deep relationship” with the convicted sex offender – a bombshell that’s left Westminster jaws on the floor and Keir Starmer scrambling to douse the flames.
But this is no one-off slip-up. Mandelson’s life is a sordid timeline of sackings, all tied to his insatiable hunger for power, perks, and pals with deep pockets. And through it all, he has waged a bitter war on Labour’s left wing, obsessing over crushing Jeremy Corbyn and the socialist dream he represented. Let’s rewind the tape on this corrupt chameleon’s chaotic career.
Twice sacked, but like a bad stain, Mandelson didn’t go away
It all kicked off in the glossy days of New Labour, when Tony Blair’s spin machine was in overdrive. Mandelson, the architect of Blair’s centrist makeover, slithered into cabinet as Trade and Industry Secretary in 1997. But just 18 months later, in December 1998, boom! He was forced to resign in disgrace over an undisclosed £373,000 loan from fellow minister Geoffrey Robinson – cash used to splash on a swanky Notting Hill pad.
Mandelson hadn’t declared it, claiming it was all above board. Yeah, right! This was classic self-dealing: rubbing shoulders with the rich to fund his lavish lifestyle, while preaching probity to the plebs. Blair called it a “mistake”, but the public smelled sleaze. Mandelson? He bounced back like a bad penny, but the rot was setting in.
Fast-forward to 2001, and Mandelson’s second spectacular nosedive. Rehabilitated as Northern Ireland Secretary, he got tangled in the Hinduja passport scandal. The billionaire Indian brothers, Srichand and Gopichand Hinduja, wanted British passports – and Mandelson allegedly pulled strings after they donated £1m to the Millennium Dome, a pet project of his.
He denied wrongdoing, but the evidence piled up: phone calls, favours, the works. On January 24, 2001, he quit again, insisting he was “not a liar”.
Critics howled corruption – Mandelson was trading influence for billionaire buddies. This wasn’t public service; it was a personal enrichment scheme disguised as politics. Twice sacked, twice unrepentant, he retreated to Brussels as EU Trade Commissioner, pocketing a fat salary while plotting his return.
Epitome of New Labour’s cosy-up to capitalism
But Mandelson’s venom wasn’t just for his own scandals – oh no. As Labour’s left began stirring under the radar, he turned his fire on them. The man who epitomised New Labour’s cosy-up-to-capitalism ethos despised anything smelling of socialism. Enter Jeremy Corbyn in 2015, the anti-austerity firebrand who stormed to Labour leadership on a wave of grassroots fury.
Corbyn stood for everything Mandelson loathed: renationalising railways and utilities, taxing the super-rich, scrapping Trident nukes, and standing up for Palestine against endless wars.
It was a vision of hope for the working class – free education, NHS investment, workers’ rights – powered by an army of new activists full of a new hope.
Mandelson? He saw red.
From day one, the Dark Lord obsessed over destroying Corbyn. In 2015, he penned a private memo urging Blairites to bide their time, letting the public “turn against” the leftie leader.
But patience wasn’t his style. By 2017, Mandelson confessed:
I try to undermine Jeremy Corbyn every single day.
He branded Corbyn’s movement “sectarian,” a “cult” unfit for power.
Why the hate? Corbyn threatened Mandelson’s world – the world of corporate schmoozing, where politicians like him hobnob with tycoons for personal gain. Corbyn’s Labour was about people power, not elite deals. Mandelson, fresh from his own brushes with billionaires, including autocrats and oligarchs, couldn’t stomach it.
Trying ‘every day to bring down Corbyn’
As Corbyn defied odds in the 2017 election, nearly toppling Theresa May, Mandelson ramped up the sabotage. He worked “every day to bring down Corbyn” – his own proudly public declaration – leaking poison to the press and rallying centrists against the “hard left.”
In 2019, as Labour faced Brexit turmoil, Mandelson gloated over defeats, blaming Corbyn’s “no idea” leadership.
It was obsessive, personal – a vendetta to purge the party of its socialist soul and restore the Blairite order where Mandelson thrived.
Corbyn stepped down in 2020, but Mandelson’s crusade lingered. He advised Keir Starmer on ditching left-wing policies, helping Starmer win in 2024 by neutering Corbynism.
The Reward? Starmer handed him the plum US ambassador gig in 2024 even as there was already public outcry and evidence about Mandelson’s deep relationship with the probable Israeli agent. However, old habits die hard.
Enter the latest chapter of the Epstein scandal. Fresh docs publicly reveal Mandelson’s even closer Epstein links: stays at his properties, flights on the “Lolita Express,” even a “banya” steam bath with the predator.
Poetic justice
What a legacy! Three sackings, all soaked in sleaze: loans from ministers, passports for donors, Epstein’s shadow. Mandelson’s corruption isn’t just financial, it’s ideological. His attacks on Corbyn weren’t principled: they were self-preservation. Corbyn’s Labour promised accountability for the elite, an end to the cronyism Mandelson embodied. By smashing the left, he safeguarded his slimy network.
Now, as Mandelson licks his wounds, Corbyn is launching a new left-wing party with Zarah Sultana, vowing to:
take on the rich and powerful.
Poetic justice? You bet. The Prince of Darkness is eclipsed, but his toxic trail warns: in politics, self-dealers like Mandelson always get found out – eventually.
If we didn’t live in a plutocracy, we could hope that would be the end of any influence the nefarious backroom operator would ever have.
Featured image via the Canary
By Shakir Razak
This post was originally published on Canary.