Foreign secretary concerned ministers not told of Mandelson vetting fears sooner

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has said she is "extremely concerned" ministers were not told sooner about issues raised in the vetting process to appoint Lord Mandelson as US ambassador.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is facing calls to resign from opposition parties and is due to answer questions on the scandal in Parliament on Monday.

The Foreign Office's top civil servant Sir Olly Robbins, who was sacked last week over the matter, is expected to face MPs on the Foreign Affairs Committee the following day.

Ahead of that appearance, Cooper wrote to committee chair Dame Emily Thornberry, saying she had asked for a review of the information given to the committee to ensure it is "fully accurate".

She wrote: "I am extremely concerned about information that has now come to light and the fact that it was not previously provided to ministers - which has in turn affected information given to Parliament."

Sir Keir has said it was "staggering" he had not been told sooner that Lord Mandelson had failed security vetting. He had previously told the Commons due process had been followed and has been accused of misleading Parliament.

On Friday evening, Downing Street took the unusual step of releasing an official account of the meeting on 15 April during which the prime minister has said he was informed about Lord Mandelson's vetting for the first time.

Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy told the Guardian that the prime minister would have blocked Lord Mandelson's appointment as US ambassador had he known that he had failed the security vetting.

"I have absolutely no doubt at all, knowing the PM as I do, that had he known that Peter Mandelson had not passed the vetting, he would never, ever have appointed him ambassador," he said.

Lammy, who was foreign secretary at the time, added that neither he nor his advisers had been told about Lord Mandelson's vetting process at the time, but conceded there were some "time pressures" on the Foreign Office to confirm him ahead of Donald Trump's return to the US presidency.

On the departure of Sir Olly, Lammy said he was "surprised and shocked" by the news, calling him an "outstanding" civil servant.

Sir Olly had been the most senior civil servant at the Foreign Office for two weeks when it was announced Lord Mandelson had been picked for the Washington role.

His scheduled grilling by the Foreign Affairs Committee comes after Dame Emily requested his appearance on Friday saying developments last week "called into question" evidence he previously gave to the committee.

BBC News understands Sir Olly has not formally accepted the committee's invitation, but friends of his said he was preparing to appear on Tuesday.