UK government denies cover-up after PM ex-aide’s phone stolen

UK  – (Web Desk) – UK officials have said there was no conspiracy after the phone of the prime minister’s former top aide was stolen. The government promised to release messages connected to the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

The stolen phone belonged to Morgan McSweeney. People are now asking if the government can still share all messages about Peter Mandelson’s appointment as Britain’s ambassador to the US.

In February, lawmakers ordered Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government to release thousands of emails, messages, and documents about how Mandelson, a friend of the late US sex offender Epstein, was approved for the role in late 2024.

McSweeney left Downing Street last month. He said he took full responsibility for advising Starmer to appoint Mandelson.

Mandelson was removed after only a few months when his links to Epstein came to light. Police have now opened an investigation into alleged misconduct in office by Mandelson.

A Conservative spokesperson said the timing of McSweeney’s phone theft in London in October 2025 was “very convenient.” But Downing Street and senior ministers denied any cover-up.

Starmer’s spokesperson said the phone was stolen months before a parliamentary motion required the documents to be released. Health Secretary Wes Streeting added the loss of messages was a “cock-up, not a conspiracy.”

The Metropolitan Police released the transcript of the 999 call McSweeney made after his phone went missing, a rare move for them.

It showed that McSweeney failed to inform the call handler that he worked for Downing Street, however he did say the stolen device was a “government phone”.

His employment “was not information provided to us and could not reasonably have shaped our decision making”, police said in a statement.

The force is investigating Mandelson over allegations he leaked sensitive documents to Epstein when he was a government minister, including during the 2008 financial crash.

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Britain’s former prince Andrew is also the subject of a similar police probe. Neither man has been charged.

Starmer sacked Mandelson as his ambassador to Washington in September 2025 when new details emerged showing the extent of his friendship with Epstein, who died by suicide in prison in 2019.

The first tranche of documents related to the appointment were released earlier this month and showed Starmer was warned that appointing Mandelson carried a “reputational risk”.

The second batch is due to be released after MPs return from their Easter break in mid-April.