Epstein case documents shake up British politics! Prince William and his wife make their first statement

The Paper The official residence of the British royal family, Kensington Palace, issued a statement on the 9th saying that Britain’s Prince William and his wife, Princess Kate, are deeply concerned about the latest revelations related to the late American businessman Jeffrey Epstein.

It is reported that,This is the first time Prince William and his wife have publicly commented on the Epstein case. The statement said their “focus remains on the victims.”

Recently, former British Ambassador to the United States Peter Mandelson was accused of being involved in the Epstein case, causing a storm of public opinion. British Prime Minister Starmer apologized to the victims of the Epstein case on the 5th; on the 8th, the British Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff Morgan McSweeney resigned due to Mandelson’s involvement in the Epstein case.

In October 2025, as the controversy between Andrew, the younger brother of King Charles III of the United Kingdom, and Epstein raged, King Charles III stripped Andrew of his titles, titles and related honors, and asked him to move out of the royal residence.

Xinhua News Agency reported in Beijing on February 9 that a new batch of documents on the Epstein case recently released by the US Department of Justice continues to ferment as it implicates political and business celebrities from many European and American countries: Morgan McSweeney, the chief of staff of the British Prime Minister, resigned on the 8th due to the involvement of former British Ambassador to the United States Peter Mandelson. He had recommended Mandelson to British Prime Minister Starmer to serve as ambassador to the United States.

According to Reuters analysis, it was revealed that Mandelson had a close relationship with the late wealthy American businessman Epstein. The decision to appoint Mandelson as ambassador to the United States has caused Starmer to face the “most serious crisis” since he took office nearly 18 months ago. Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov commented that the Epstein case documents revealed the “true face” of the Western elite.

On January 27, a man held an umbrella and walked near Big Ben in London, England. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Ying

Dominoes?

McSweeney issued a statement on the 8th saying that he had recommended to Starmer that Mandelson be appointed ambassador to the United States. However, this appointment decision was “wrong” and Mandelson “damaged the Labor Party, the United Kingdom and the public’s trust in politics.” McSweeney stressed that he took “full responsibility” for the appointment recommendation.

According to reports from Agence France-Presse and other foreign media, McSweeney has always kept a low profile. He is 48 years old and has played an “important role” in helping Starmer become Prime Minister. He will serve as Director of the Prime Minister’s Office in October 2024. According to British media reports, Starmer jointly nominated Jill Cuthbertson and Vidya Arakson, deputy directors of the Prime Minister’s Office, as acting directors on the 8th.

Mandelson served as Secretary of Commerce and other important positions during the administrations of Labor Prime Ministers Blair and Brown. He was appointed Ambassador to the United States by Starmer in February 2025. He was fired a few months after taking up the post because his relationship with Epstein surfaced.

Starmer said Mandelson lied about his relationship with Epstein before he became ambassador to the United States. A new batch of Epstein case documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice at the end of January further revealed the close relationship between the two: Mandelson and his partner were suspected of receiving tens of thousands of dollars in transfers from Epstein; after becoming Secretary of Commerce in 2009, he disclosed market-sensitive information to Epstein, involving the British government’s consideration of selling assets after the outbreak of the global financial crisis.

Currently, the British police have launched a criminal investigation into Mandelson around “possible dereliction of duty while holding public office” and searched his home and assets in London, the British capital, on the 6th. Mandelson, who has not been charged with sex crimes, recently resigned as a life member of the House of Lords and quit the Labor Party.

According to Reuters, the British government agreed last week to release all private communications records of British cabinet members during Mandelson’s tenure as ambassador to the United States. The relevant information was released as early as this week. Media analysts believe that once confidential information about how the UK deals with US President Trump is made public, it may damage the relationship between the leaders of the UK and the US.

On January 27, people walked on the Millennium Bridge in London, England. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Ying

Trouble in the political arena

According to analysis by Reuters and other media, the recent release of new evidence about the relationship between Mandelson and Epstein by the U.S. Department of Justice is tantamount to aggravating the “old wounds” of the British ruling party Labor Party. The Labor government is currently being criticized and questioned by the opposition party and within the Labor Party. It remains to be seen whether a series of “operations” such as McSweeney’s resignation can calm the aftermath.

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said McSweeney should have resigned long ago and “Starmer needs to take responsibility for his poor decisions”. A Labor MP who did not want to be named believed that McSweeney’s resignation was “too late”. Although it “gained time” for Starmer, “the outcome seems irreversible”.

Pat McFadden, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, who also belongs to the Labor Party, was interviewed by a BBC podcast on the 8th. When asked whether “Starmer’s leadership is in trouble,” McFadden called for support for Starmer on the grounds that “frequent changes in prime ministers are not conducive to the United Kingdom.” McFadden also accused Mandelson of “insisting on taking office” despite knowing his relationship with Epstein.

The U.S. Department of Justice successively released a new batch of Epstein case documents on January 30, totaling more than 3 million pages, including more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 pictures. These documents show that political and business celebrities from the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway, Slovakia and other European and American countries are related to Epstein.

Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said in an interview with Russian media on the 8th that the Epstein case documents revealed the true face of Western elites, and that their actions “broke human conscience” and were “pure evil.”

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