Starmer Faces Critical Days Due to the 'Prince of Darkness' 0 8

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer may be forced to resign within the next week. This is reported by Bloomberg, citing sources within the Labour Party.

The reason for the politician's departure from his post, as commentators explain, may be the scandal surrounding the appointment of diplomat Peter Mandelson as the UK ambassador to the United States, who was caught in friendship with the scandal-ridden financier Jeffrey Epstein. The situation has already cost the positions of the Prime Minister's Chief of Staff Morgan McSweeney and Director of Communications Tim Allan: they resigned last Sunday, February 8.

Starmer himself, commenting on reports of his imminent resignation, expressed his intention to remain in his position.

"We will move forward. (...) We must prove that politics can be a force for good. I believe that is possible. I believe that is true. We are moving forward. We are going with confidence, continuing to change the country," the Daily Telegraph quotes the politician as saying in an address to the government staff.

Mandelson, nicknamed the "Prince of Darkness" for his ability to weave behind-the-scenes intrigues by any means, has been a prominent figure in British politics since the 1980s. For decades, he has built extensive connections at many levels of the British establishment. Mandelson was an influential player both under Labour and Conservative governments.

The first warning bell of a major scandal rang back in September of last year when some of Epstein's files were made public.

In emails, Lord Mandelson questioned the fairness of Epstein's sentence for involving a minor in prostitution. At that time, he called the sentence erroneous and believed that the decision should be reviewed. Now, Mandelson disputes the claim that he considered the sentence erroneous, stating that he was merely supporting his friend privately.