URGENT: Starmer Defends Mandelson Amid Explosive Epstein Email Scandal

BREAKING NEWS: Starmer Defends Mandelson Amid Epstein Email Scandal Sir Keir Starmer has defended Lord Peter Mandelson after it emerged that officials at No 10 and the Foreign Office were aware of supportive emails between Mandelson and paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The emails, which have not been made public, were known to officials as early as Tuesday. The Prime Minister's Questions took place on Wednesday, with Starmer standing by Mandelson despite the knowledge of the emails. However, it is understood that Starmer was not aware of the contents of the messages at the time. Lord Mandelson was sacked as the UK's ambassador to the US shortly before 11:00 on Thursday. The Foreign Office had asked him about the emails on Tuesday but did not receive a response until the following day. This development comes amid growing scrutiny of Lord Mandelson's tenure as ambassador and his association with Epstein, who was convicted of sex trafficking in 2008. The current status is that Lord Mandelson has been sacked, and an investigation into the email scandal is likely to follow. The Prime Minister's office has not commented on the matter beyond confirming Mandelson's dismissal. This is a developing story, and we will provide updates as more information becomes available. *This is a developing story. Updates will be provided as more information becomes available. Based on reporting from Bbc.*