Search

Foreign Office’s top civil servant Olly Robbins to leave post over Mandelson vetting row

Keir Starmer had by then announced he would be making Mandelson ambassador, posing a dilemma for officials at the Foreign Office, who decided to employ a rarely used authority to override the recommendation from security

Starmer was kept in dark about Mandelson’s vetting by two top civil servants

Keir Starmer at a Cabinet meeting in February. Photograph: Kin Cheung/AFP/Getty Images A government source insisted Little “did not sit on the information” but was involved in a complex process and was trying to establish

Olly Robbins is just the latest: a guide to the high-profile exits under Starmer’s tenure

Keir Starmer’s two-year tenure as prime minister. Here we take a look at some of the most high-profile resignations since Starmer came to power. ## Officials 1. --- ### Sue Gray Gray was the prime

Revealed: Mandelson failed vetting but Foreign Office overruled decision

Keir Starmer had [by then announced](https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/20/appointment-peter-mandelson-new-uk-ambassador-to-us-divides-labour-mps) he would be making Mandelson the UK’s chief diplomat in Washington, posing a dilemma for officials at the Foreign Office, who decided