Angela Rayner will be licking her lips but there could be a general election before the end of year, writes Giles Sheldrick.
Peter Mandelson is subject to an ongoing investigation into misconduct in public office (Image: Getty)
Machiavellian Peter Mandelson encapsulates everything that is wrong with politics but his misdeeds could well have done this country a great service.
That might sound strange given the dishonest dark lord’s treachery, deceitfulness, and association with prolific paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. But he will surely be the straw to break the camel’s back.
Creepy Mandelson, the anointed prince of New Labour, faces a criminal investigation after being accused of passing market-sensitive information to his sex offender chum while he supposedly served Britain as business secretary.
And as he scuttles off to hide under a rock those who had no hesitation in elevating him to the lofty position of His Majesty’s Ambassador to the United States of America fall over themselves to save their skin.
But it’s too late.
Yesterday the latest piece of the wall crumbled and fell as pitiful prime minister Sir Keir Starmer‘s political human shield threw in his lot.
Chief of staff Morgan McSweeney – blamed by many for Mandelson’s appointment – quit.
Last week was Sir Keir’s worst week as prime minister. And that’s saying something.
But this week is shaping up to be a whole lot worse and it will probably do for him. It will be remembered as the moment when his downfall became inevitable.
Stuttering Starmer claims Mandelson lied to him during the vetting process. He also claims Mandelson told him he hardly knew Epstein.
But for the prime minister to claim ignorance over the depth of his involvement with Epstein raises serious questions over the vetting process that cleared the way to his appointment and, given his shady past, a complete lack of judgement on the part of our prime minister.
It is now almost impossible to conclude anything other than the fact that Starmer was so desperate for Mandelson to be parachuted into Washington he looked the other way.
So what next?
The game is up for both Starmer and Mandelson says Giles Sheldrick (Image: Getty)
The Met’s Central Specialist Crime team have carried out searches at Mandelson’s sumptuous homes in Wiltshire and London in relation to its ongoing investigation into misconduct in public office offences.
After McSweeney’s exit it means exposed Starmer will go – in weeks, if not days – and then Angela Rayner will likely assume the crown.
Just think about it. The so-called Queen of the North, who left school at 16, pregnant and with no qualifications, could soon assume the same high office as Margaret Thatcher and Sir Tony Blair.
But she is no stranger to scandal. The hard-left radical was forced to quit as deputy prime minister over a conveyancing cock-up last year.
In fact, she is still being investigated by HM Revenue and Customs over tax on her second home.
But after the weekend’s events she is emboldened, on manoeuvres, and desperate to take this country back to the 1970s.
She has been itching to see off Starmer and exact revenge since leaving the government in September.
And if anyone is delighted by Mandelson’s spectacular, if not wholly unexpected latest downfall, it is her.
There’s just one problem. She doesn’t have a mandate for her union-friendly agenda and so the clamour for a general election will be impossible to ignore.
Put simply, the country did not sanction what she would want to unleash.
So how long for Starmer?
The Gorton and Denton by-election is a fortnight away. If he limps on until then, a slew of local elections follow in May.
But regardless, the scandal and ineptitude that has followed since Labour took office in July 2024 means time is surely up, both for him and his gormless government.
It is quite clear Britain has buyer’s remorse after electing this shower.
And so it is not beyond the realms of possibility that Nigel Farage and Reform UK could be leading this country by the end of the year, if not sooner.
