SIR Keir Starmer didn’t personally interview Lord Mandelson for his top US ambassador job despite warnings over his links to disgraced Jeffrey Epstein.
The ex-Labour peer didn’t undergo a rigorous test with the Prime Minister before he was given his job in Washington DC.
The PM has been under intense pressure over the appointment with the Tories demanding a sleaze probe into whether he misled MPs.
A host of red flags over Mandelson taking the job were raised in a “due diligence” report but no discussion with the PM took place.
It showed that Mandelson’s relationship with the financier carried on after his conviction and he even stayed at his property.
Number 10 today said: “The full process at the time of the appointment was followed. There was no requirement for a formal interview with the Prime Minister.”
It comes after The Times reported that Starmer gave close aides Morgan McSweeney and Matthew Doyle the task of vetting links to sex offender Epstein.
Files that emerged this week revealed National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell believed the appointment process was “weirdly rushed”.
It comes as the Tories accused the government of a “cover up” over the release this week of files relating to Mandelson taking on the role.
Shadow Cabinet Minister Alex Burghart has written to the sleaze watchdog Sir Laurie Magnus demanding that there was “missing” correspondence.
There was also an absence of comments from the PM relating to Mandelson but Downing Street said this didn’t mean “advice was not read or considered”.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman reiterated today that Sir Keir and his team respond to advice in a “range of different ways”.
He said: “The absence of comments in a particular box doesn’t mean the advice wasn’t read or considered.
“There’s a range of different ways in which the Prime Minister and his senior team responds to advice throughout the day.”
The spokesman would not be drawn on whether private emails or WhatsApp messages would be part of future releases.
The PM has taken full responsibility for giving Mandelson the job.
Lord Mandelson was arrested last month on suspicion of misconduct in public office, having been accused of passing sensitive information on to Epstein during his time as business secretary under Gordon Brown’s premiership.
He was subsequently bailed, but later released from his bail conditions, although he remains under investigation.
