Top News

'Eco-populist' Green Party boss, Zack Polanski, has accused Sir Keir Starmer of defending former US Ambassador Peter Mandelson "to protect his own career".

The accusation comes after the Labour grandee was sacked over his links to the paedophile, Jeffrey Epstein.

Mr Polanski was elected leader of the left-wing Green Party last week with 85 per cent of the vote.

He told the Express that the scandal shows politics is "broken".

Mr Polanski said: "Trust in politics does feel like it's an all time low."

He went on to say that Starmer, who was elected on a platform "of cleaning up politics" had "pushed out [...] people on the left, three of them being women, up until Peter Mandelson."

He added: "Now, yesterday at the dispatch box, Keir Starmer inexplicably seemed to defend Peter Mandelson at all costs, presumably because Keir Starmer was trying to protect his own career."

The Foreign Office confirmed this morning that Lord Mandelson had been 'withdrawn' as the United Kingdom's Ambassador to the USA with 'immediate effect'.

A press release said: "In light of the additional information in emails written by Peter Mandelson, the Prime Minister has asked the Foreign Secretary to withdraw him as Ambassador."

Lord Mandelson had written to Epstein in 2008 while he faced charges, telling him: "Your friends stay with you and love you."

Sir Keir Starmer had defended Mandelson in the Commons just 24 hours earlier.

The decision to sack him prompted Conservative MPs to accuse the Prime Minister of a "total fiasco" with only days to go until the state visit of US President Donald Trump.

Shadow Housing Secretary James Cleverly said: "About a week out from the state visit of President Trump we have no ambassador and a Foreign Secretary that has been in the job for only a few days. What a total fiasco!!! And this is all Starmer's fault. I can see him being gone by Christmas."

Mr Polanski, who has branded himself an "eco-populist" and launched a podcast which surged to fourth in the charts, said the scandal proved politics was rigged to reward failure.

He added: "Peter Mandelson will be fine. He'll go have a job now with a high paid lobbying firm or he will fail upwards.

"And we see this throughout our society constantly. I think it's about a broken system of politics and a broken system of lobbying that seems to allow some of the people with the worst judgments, the worst values and the worst connection to the problems of everyday people in our country to constantly be promoted and constantly successful."

Labour was contacted for comment.