Morgan McSweeney resigns and says he takes ‘full responsibility’ for advising Starmer to appoint Mandelson – UK politics live | Politics
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McSweeney says he takes ‘full responsibility’ for advising Starmer to appoint Mandelson
We can now bring you Morgan McSweeney’s resignation letter in full:
After careful reflection, I have decided to resign from the government.
The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself.
When asked, I advised the prime minister to make that appointment and I take full responsibility for that advice. In public life responsibility must be owned when it matters most, not just when it is most convenient. In the circumstances, the only honourable course is to step aside.
This has not been an easy decision. Much has been written and said about me over the years but my motivations have always been simple: I have worked every day to elect and support a government that puts the lives of ordinary people first and leads us to a better future for our great country. Only a Labour government will do that. I leave with pride in all we have achieved mixed with regret at the circumstances of my departure. But I have always believed there are moments when you must accept your responsibility and step aside for the bigger cause.
As I leave I have two further reflections: Firstly, and most importantly, we must remember the women and girls whose lives were ruined by Jeffrey Epstein and whose voices went unheard for far too long.
Secondly, while I did not oversee the due diligence and vetting process, I believe that process must now be fundamentally overhauled. This cannot simply be a gesture but a safeguard for the future.
I remain fully supportive of the prime minister. He is working every day to rebuild trust, restore standards and serve the country. I will continue to back that mission in whatever way I can. It has been the honour of my life to serve.
Key events
Sir Keir Starmer should “look at his own position” and consider following Morgan McSweeney by stepping down, a Labour MP has said.
Brian Leishman, the MP for Alloa and Grangemouth, said McSweeney’s “resignation as chief of staff to the prime minister is in the best interests of the government”.
He was at the heart of the political misjudgements and errors that have been made since winning the general election. It is also in the best interests of the Labour party as he was instrumental in the lack of internal democracy and the culture of intense factionalism we are suffering from.
Speaking to the Press Association, Leishman said that there needs to be “change in political direction and that comes from the very top, so the prime minister must look at his own position and question whether he should follow McSweeney’s lead one last time, and resign for the good of the country and the Labour party”.
Geraldine McKelvie
In the early hours of 5 July 2024, Keir Starmer arrived at Tate Modern in central London to celebrate Labour’s landslide election victory. As he prepared to address the throng of cheering activists, he was flanked by two people: his wife, Victoria, and his closest aide, Morgan McSweeney.
A reluctant McSweeney, it was reported, was dragged on stage by the soon-to-be prime minister to a roar from the party’s foot soldiers. A few years previously, this moment had seemed impossible. Many believe that, without McSweeney, it would have been.
Shortly before Christmas 2019, under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn, Labour had suffered its worst election defeat since 1935. Voters in swathes of the party’s industrial heartlands in the north and the Midlands – from retired coalminers in County Durham to steelworkers in Scunthorpe – had battled the December elements to vote Tory for the first time. Labour seemed lost to the unelectable hard left and some predicted it would never win another general election.
Yet fewer than five years later it had done just that. Not only had the party clawed back most of its “red wall”, it had triumphed in a handful of seats that had never before had a Labour MP. McSweeney was credited as the brains behind one of the most staggering political comebacks in British history.
The now disgraced Peter Mandelson, one of the architects of New Labour, summed up how the party’s moderates once felt about McSweeney when he said: “I don’t know who and how and when he was invented. But whoever it was, they will find their place in heaven.”
Yet it is McSweeney’s relationship with his mentor Mandelson that has been his undoing.
Labour MP John Slinger has defended Keir Starmer and rejected calls for him to step down.
In a statement posted to X, the Rugby MP said “we don’t ditch a leader just because the going gets tough”, adding that “it’s in the national interest for Keir Starmer to stay as prime minister”.
Slinger continued:
Since I’ve done that, I have been approached in the street by constituents telling me they heard me on the radio and totally agree. I have had CEOs of companies message me to say they agree.
And I have had people from all around the country, whether Labour or not, saying they think the last thing the country needs is leadership speculations and that we should support the prime minister.
Keir Starmer ‘needs to go’, says Polanski
Zack Polanski, the leader of the Green party, has called for Keir Starmer to step down, saying Morgan McSweeney’s resignation was necessary “but not sufficient”.
Reacting to McSweeney’s resignation on X, Polanski wrote: “Necessary but not sufficient.
“He knew. And still appointed him. Starmer needs to go.”
As a reminder, McSweeney advised the prime minister to appoint Peter Mandelson as UK ambassador to the US despite his known ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
Farage predicts Starmer will be out of No 10 after Labour’s expected ‘disaster’ in May elections
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said in a social media post:
As predicted McSweeney has gone. Labour are just continuing the chaos we saw under the Tories. My money says Starmer won’t be far behind after Labour’s disaster in the elections this coming May.
The May elections, which include contests for council seats across England, as well as for the Welsh and Scottish parliaments, have long been seen as a crucial test for Keir Starmer, who is deeply unpopular with the public.
The prime minister is expected to face open calls to resign if Labour suffers heavy losses in May. Reform has consistently led in opinion polls, and poses a huge threat to Labour, along with the Greens who are taking votes from the party’s left.
The ‘buck stops’ with the PM, Lib Dems say as deputy leader calls for an end to ‘political soap opera’
Liberal Democrat deputy leader, Daisy Cooper, said this in reaction to Morgan McSweeney’s resignation:
The prime minister can change his advisers all he likes, but the buck stops with him.
We need to see an end to this political soap opera, with answers for the British public and, most importantly, justice for the victims and survivors of Epstein and his network.
We have not yet been told who is going to replace Morgan McSweeney as the prime minister’s chief of staff, suggesting it may not have been a planned announcement.
Only this morning, the work and pensions secretary, Pat McFadden, told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg on her Sunday politics programme that there was “no point” in getting rid of McSweeney over the Mandelson revelations.
Numerous Labour MPs called for McSweeney’s departure before it came this afternoon. The names reportedly included Clive Efford, Patrick Hurley and Kim Johnson. We have some reaction to the resignation from other Labour MPs now:
Karl Turner, a Labour MP for Kingston upon Hull East, wrote on X: “Should think so. Now let’s move on.”
John McDonnell, the former shadow chancellor under Jeremy Corbyn, said: “Morgan McSweeney’s resignation is the right measure but let’s remember the old adage: Advisers advise but ministers decide.”
Apsana Begum, the MP for Poplar and Limehouse, said: “Mandelson was also able to resign from the Lords & the Labour Party. A whole set of investigations into the internal can be avoided now, with questions left about the political culture and leadership of a faction that allows for resignations over accountability and transparency.”
Richard Burgon, the left-wing Labour MP for Leeds East, said: “Important first step. The Labour General Secretary must set up an independent inquiry into the practices that McSweeney & Mandelson undertook in the Labour Party. There is a lot to do to rid the Party of the nasty factionalism that has left Labour so unpopular with the public.”
Neal Lawson, director of the soft left pressure group Compass, said:
Morgan McSweeney’s resignation is simply one person jumping overboard on a sinking ship.
In time, a new captain will be needed to steer the party – and the country – in a different direction.
Starmer is a ‘lame duck leader’ who should follow McSweeney ‘out the door’, SNP says
Reacting to the McSweeney resignation, SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said:
Whenever Keir Starmer makes a catastrophic error of judgement, someone else is always forced to carry the can.
It won’t wash with voters this time. Advisers only advise. It was Keir Starmer who showed appalling personal judgement in appointing Peter Mandelson, despite knowing about his links to Jeffrey Epstein. This is entirely on him.
Keir Starmer’s time in office has been beset by a constant stream of bad judgements, broken promises, scandals and failure. Voters have lost confidence in him and want him to go.
With his own MPs calling for him to quit, Starmer is a lame duck leader. He should take personal responsibility and follow Morgan McSweeney out the door before he does any more damage.
It was an honour working with McSweeney, Starmer says after loss of key strategist
Reacting to his chief of staff’s departure, Keir Starmer said in a statement:
It’s been an honour working with Morgan McSweeney for many years. He turned our party around after one of its worst ever defeats and played a central role running our election campaign.
It is largely thanks to his dedication, loyalty and leadership that we won a landslide majority and have the chance to change the country.
Having worked closely with Morgan in opposition and in government, I have seen every day his commitment to the Labour Party and to our country. Our party and I owe him a debt of gratitude, and I thank him for his service.
Badenoch says Starmer should ‘take responsibility for his own terrible decisions’ after McSweeney resignation
In response to news of McSweeney resigning as the prime minister’s chief of staff, the Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said Starmer should also “take responsibility” for his actions. In a post on X, Badenoch wrote:
It’s about time. But once again with this PM it’s somebody else’s fault: ‘Mandelson lied to me’ or ‘Morgan advised me’.
Keir Starmer has to take responsibility for his own terrible decisions. But he never does.
Downing Street said as recently as Thursday that Morgan McSweeney retained the prime minister’s confidence.
No 10 may hope McSweeney’s resignation takes some of the pressure of Keir Starmer, but now questions will be raised about the prime minister’s ability to go on without his key strategist as concerns over Starmer’s judgment and authority continue to swirl.
McSweeney says he takes ‘full responsibility’ for advising Starmer to appoint Mandelson
We can now bring you Morgan McSweeney’s resignation letter in full:
After careful reflection, I have decided to resign from the government.
The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself.
When asked, I advised the prime minister to make that appointment and I take full responsibility for that advice. In public life responsibility must be owned when it matters most, not just when it is most convenient. In the circumstances, the only honourable course is to step aside.
This has not been an easy decision. Much has been written and said about me over the years but my motivations have always been simple: I have worked every day to elect and support a government that puts the lives of ordinary people first and leads us to a better future for our great country. Only a Labour government will do that. I leave with pride in all we have achieved mixed with regret at the circumstances of my departure. But I have always believed there are moments when you must accept your responsibility and step aside for the bigger cause.
As I leave I have two further reflections: Firstly, and most importantly, we must remember the women and girls whose lives were ruined by Jeffrey Epstein and whose voices went unheard for far too long.
Secondly, while I did not oversee the due diligence and vetting process, I believe that process must now be fundamentally overhauled. This cannot simply be a gesture but a safeguard for the future.
I remain fully supportive of the prime minister. He is working every day to rebuild trust, restore standards and serve the country. I will continue to back that mission in whatever way I can. It has been the honour of my life to serve.
Peter Walker
My colleague Peter Walker has some background on Morgan McSweeney, who is reported to have pushed for Peter Mandelson’s recruitment into the US ambassador role last year. Here is an extract from his report:
McSweeney masterminded Starmer’s path to Downing Street less than five years after Jeremy Corbyn’s devastating defeat in the 2019 election …
McSweeney’s departure follows the recent loss of two other aides who were also particularly close to Starmer, his director of political strategy Paul Ovenden and his communications head Steph Driver.
But the loss of McSweeney, who began his career trying to oust the hard left from Labour in Lambeth, south London, is particularly emblematic given his pivotal role in the Starmer project and the transformation of Labour in the lead-up to the 2024 election.
Despite his success in guiding Labour to a huge majority, McSweeney had critics within the party, and particularly among MPs, a number of whom complained he presided over an unnecessarily factional, petty and cliquey Downing Street operation.
