Welcome back to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. In this week's episode, we discuss the latest developments in the headline-making Peter Mandelson scandal, and whether Keir Starmer's recent conduct towards the civil service – and his past mistakes – are enough to see his premiership crumble.

Timecodes

00:00 – Introduction.

01:17 – Who is Peter Mandelson and what's his connection with Jeffrey Epstein?

08:24 – Why did Mandelson get a job if he had failed security vetting?

13:08 – How did Keir Starmer respond?

16:27 – How did senior civil servant Olly Robbins answer to being blamed for getting Mandelson in post?

19:40 – Does former ambassador Karen Pierce not continuing in her role suggest Starmer is running a boys' club?

21:45 – How the Mandelson saga has undermined Keir Starmer's rule-abiding reputation.

23:12 – Why did Starmer take such a gamble on appointing Mandelson?

26:20 – What's next for Keir Starmer as Prime Minister and who would replace him?

36:35 – Morgan McSweeney to give testimony to the Foreign Affairs Committee.

39:00 – Taxpayers will probably fund a large payout for Olly Robbins.

40:00 – How will the Government and the civil service continue working together?

41:30 – Bluffer's Guide and end.

You can follow us at @commons.people on Instagram and TikTok. This is a HuffPost UK podcast. Music provided by Epidemic Sounds. Producer: Sam Cleal

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