Lord Mandelson has said he never encountered young women or girls during visits to Jeffrey Epstein’s properties and has defended his decision not to apologise directly to the late paedophile’s victims, insisting he was unaware of Epstein’s crimes at the time.
Speaking to the BBC in his first interview since being dismissed as the UK’s ambassador to the United States, Lord Mandelson said he was not “knowledgeable of what he was doing”. He rejected claims that he was complicit in Epstein’s abuse. He suggested he had been “kept separate” from the sexual aspects of Epstein’s life because he is gay.
His comments follow his removal from the diplomatic post after emails emerged showing he had maintained contact with Epstein after the financier’s 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor.
Lord Mandelson said the only people he ever saw at Epstein’s homes were “middle-aged housekeepers” and stressed he would have apologised if he believed he bore any responsibility.
Mandelson on Epstein Victims and Calls for an Apology
Asked on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg on BBC One whether he wished to apologise to Epstein’s victims for continuing the friendship after the conviction, Lord Mandelson said, “I want to apologise to those women for a system that refused to hear their voices and did not give them the protection they were entitled to expect.”
He added, “That system gave him protection and not them.
If I had known, if I was in any way complicit or culpable, of course I would apologise for it. But I was not culpable, I was not knowledgeable of what he was doing.”
Reflecting further, he said, “I regret and will regret to my dying day the fact that powerless women, women who were denied a voice, were not given the protection they were entitled to expect.”
Epstein, a wealthy and well-connected financier, died in a New York prison cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Visits to Epstein Properties and Claims of Separation
Lord Mandelson confirmed he had stayed one or two nights on Epstein’s private island and had also visited his homes in New York and New Mexico. He maintained that he never witnessed anything inappropriate.
“The only people that were there were the housekeepers; never were there any young women or girls, or people that he was preying on or engaging with in that sort of ghastly predatory way that we subsequently found out he was doing.”
He also noted that Epstein himself was not present during his visits to the island.
Explaining his belief that he was shielded from Epstein’s crimes, he said, “Possibly some people will think because I am a gay man… I wasn’t attuned to what was going on. I don’t really accept that.
I think the issue is that because I was a gay man in his circle I was kept separate from what he was doing in the sexual side of his life.”
Ambassador Role, Emails and Government Response
Lord Mandelson’s brief tenure as ambassador ended after emails surfaced in which he offered Epstein support following the financier’s conviction. In messages reported by Bloomberg and the Sun, he was said to have encouraged Epstein to “fight for early release” and wrote: “I think the world of you.”
Downing Street sources said he had been “economical with the truth” during the appointment process and that officials were unaware of the full extent of the relationship.
On Sunday, Lord Mandelson said the government “knew everything” when he was appointed, adding, “But not the emails because they came as a surprise to me.
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I didn’t remember sending them… they no longer existed on my server.”
He said he understood why he had been dismissed and would not seek to reopen the matter, adding, “I’m moving on.”
Downing Street later said the emails showed a relationship “materially different” from what had previously been understood, particularly the suggestion that Epstein’s conviction was wrongful.
Political Reaction and Broader Comments
Labour’s Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander criticised Lord Mandelson’s stance, saying he had shown “at best, deep naivety”.
“It would have gone a long way for the women who were subjected to the most appalling treatment at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein for Peter to have apologised,” she said.
She added that while due diligence would clearly be discussed, detailed information about the relationship was not available at the time of his appointment.
During the same interview, Lord Mandelson was also questioned about US President Donald Trump’s comments on Greenland. While praising Trump’s “directness,” he said he did not believe the US would attempt to seize the territory by force, adding:
“He’s not a fool.”
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