Key evidence from sacked official at heart of Mandelson vetting row

Key points from sacked official at heart of Mandelson vetting row45 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleKate WhannelPolitical reporterPA MediaSir Olly Robbins, the former top civil servant at the Foreign Office, is giving evidence to MPs on the foreign affairs committee about his role in vetting Lord Mandelson to be the UK's ambassador to the US. It comes after Sir Olly was effectively sacked last week after it emerged his department had granted the peer security clearance for the role in January 2025, against the recommendation of security officials who vetted him.Lord Mandelson formally took up the role the following month, but was sacked seven months later over his ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.Here are the key points from his evidence to the committee. No 10 had a 'dismissive approach' to vettingIn a letter to the committee published as he was giving oral evidence, Sir Olly said that when he arrived in post at the Foreign Office on 20 January, Lord Mandelson's appointment had already been announced and agreed to by the US.He also noted that Lord Mandelson had already been given access to the Foreign Office building as well as "highly classified briefing on a case-by-case basis". He said these factors "resulted in a dismissive approach" to developed vetting, the process required to obtain security clearance, from Downing Street.'Constant pressure' from Downing StreetSir Olly said there was a "strong expectation" coming from Downing Street that Lord Mandelson "needed to be in post and in America as quickly as humanly possible". He said his office had been "under constant pressure" over when the vetting process would be completed.There was "never any interest, as far as I can recall, in whether, but only an interest in when," he added. He later said that: "Whilst I think the department felt under pressure, we were proud of the fact we&#...