Speeches by Brandreth.

“You clearly felt that Peter Mandelson was the right person for the job. You had recommended him to the Prime Minister, although you have said that you believe that the Prime Minister would have sought a wide range of opinions. Despite the fact that you ultimately resigned over your advice to the Prime Minister, would y…”

“And he was the one who ultimately will have made the decision, not being persuaded or doing what somebody else wanted him to do?”

“I wanted to ask a very quick follow-up to one of the questions Alex asked, about the types and levels of classified information that Peter Mandelson saw prior to going out to the US. Would you have expected the ambassador to the US to be briefed on and know what was in the China audit?”

“Aware, but did you consider it? Did you actively think this could happen in this case?”

“You say that it was not a big conversation, but it obviously went to the head of the diplomatic service, so that is quite a senior conversation to be having. In your answer, you said that you believe that it was not told to David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary at the time, because it was a sensitive HR issue. Are you awa…”

“Sir Oliver Robbins, the former permanent under-secretary at the Foreign Office, has lost his job. When the PM was asked, he said that he did not accept the explanation as to why he overruled the verdict of security vetting, and that is why he sacked him. Do you think that somebody should be sacked for an error of judgm…”

“You mention, of course, the links to Jeffrey Epstein, which were in the media at the time. Did you have concerns about Mandelson’s business relationships with China and Russia?”

“How involved would you say the Foreign Secretary was at the time in that decision to appoint Mandelson as the ambassador?”

“I want to go back over some of the questions that the Chair asked you. I will ask some follow-ups and seek some clarification on some of them. You said that you were out in the States at the start of December prior to the appointment being made. When you were out there, in the offline conversations that you were having…”

“You know the United States very well from your previous diplomatic role there, and you probably had links with people out there. Were you aware of any views expressed by the President’s transitional team about concerns about Mandelson being given that post, or about Dame Karen Pierce being moved on from the post?”

“I have a few follow-ups.”

“Okay. Thinking about the security vetting, we heard from Sir Philip Barton that there was no contingency plan in place in case security clearance was not granted to Peter Mandelson. Had you considered the possibility that clearance would be denied, and had you put any contingency plan in place?”

“What about when he was special envoy to the British Indian Ocean Territories?”

“I completely understand that you said you are guessing that, but were you aware that it was expected that briefings would include some information about the work that was being undertaken as part of the China audit?”

“That is okay. Thank you for your answer on that. I must say, it appeared to me that there was a significant amount of information that had come forward in the due diligence, but I think there may be some questions from others on that, so I won’t push on that now. My question was about Sir Oliver Robbins and the decisio…”

“I want to check something with you. Despite being the head of the diplomatic service, you obviously were not asked by No. 10 or the Prime Minister, directly or indirectly, your view on Peter Mandelson’s suitability for the role. Had you been asked, would you have said that you had concerns about the reputational risks …”

“Thank you. Sir Oliver Robbins, in the evidence that he gave to this Committee, said that there was a feeling of “constant pressure” in the Foreign Office around the need to get Peter Mandelson into his position. Do you have any views on that? Were you aware—I appreciate that you were in the Cabinet Office—of this press…”

“Thank you. You shared some information around the claim that the Cabinet Office questioned the need for vetting, and you set out how you think that occurred and the correct, as you see it, interpretation of that. Are you aware of any special advisers who were suggesting that Mandelson might not have needed vetting? Has…”

“Would you, though—given that we have talked about the level of note taking that is required, and where there might be notes and minutes—have expected to see notes in relation to that from a special adviser or PPS?”

“As part of the Humble Address information, will there be any information that UKSV might have provided to Chris Wormald as part of his review into the vetting process?”