MPs chastise Starmer over Mandelson scandal
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What major changes are happening at Apple with Tim Cook's departure?
Good morning from the Financial Times. Today is Tuesday, April 21st, and this is your FT News Briefing. There are big changes happening at Apple, and Keir Starmer makes his case in the Peter Mandelson vetting scandal. Plus, wealth managers are sitting pretty from the private credit boom. We'll tell you why. I'm Mark Filippino, and here's the news you need to start your day.
Tim Cook is stepping down as CEO of Apple. The iPhone maker announced that John Ternes, the company's hardware chief, will take over when Cook retires at the beginning of September. Cook has led Apple for 15 years.
How is Keir Starmer addressing the Peter Mandelson vetting scandal?
He took over from founder Steve Jobs in 2011. In that time, Apple grew 10 times larger. It's the world's leading smartphone company and also a services behemoth with things like the App Store, Apple Pay, and iCloud. Cook's departure from the top job caps a year and a half of high-profile moves at Apple. Several of its top executives left or stepped back. Cook will remain on as chair of the big tech company after Ternus takes over.
What accusations is Starmer facing regarding the Mandelson affair?
Apple shares dropped in after-hours trading yesterday.
Keir Starmer is battling for his future. The UK Prime Minister addressed members of Parliament yesterday to explain how one of Starmer's ambassadors took on the post even though he failed security vetting. Here to discuss is the FT's Whitehall editor, Lucy Fisher. Hi, Lucy. Hi, Mark. So get me up to speed.
What led to the revelation of Mandelson's failed vetting?
What's going on with Keir Starmer?
Sir Keir Starmer has had to explain to the House of Commons why he previously suggested that there was no issue with Peter Mandelson's vetting when he was appointed UK ambassador to the US. Starmer went up before MPs and claimed that he had been deliberately and repeatedly kept in the dark by the Foreign Office over this matter.
Mr. Speaker, let me be very clear. If I had been told that Peter Mandelson or anybody else had failed security, had not been given clearance on security vetting, I would not have appointed them.
And in response, he's been accused of scapegoating officials over this saga, and he's faced calls from the opposition for him to resign for misleading Parliament previously about the state of affairs.
What role did Sir Ollie Robbins play in the Mandelson vetting controversy?
How did this saga even come to light?
Well, look, it was a marmalade dropper of a scoop from The Guardian last week that Peter Mandelson had failed his vetting. I should say, we don't precisely know why Mandelson failed his security check. But in the due diligence exercise, another set of checks that were carried out regarding his appointment as ambassador, it flagged up his links to the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. It highlighted his links to China. And so there are a range of issues that have given rise to speculation about what might have been in the developed vetting that was flagged up. So there's this whole argument in the UK about, well, why did that happen?
What implications does the Mandelson scandal have for Starmer's leadership?
And some allies of the very senior official at the UK Foreign Office who overrode that recommendation are saying, well, look, Starmer and his political advisers had made so clear that they wanted this appointment to happen that It had a momentum of its own. And there's also been some back and forth about what the rules are regarding the vetting and whether the official in question actually was able to, under the law, tell ministers about what the vetting process had thrown up. So quite a confusing picture, but at heart, it comes back to Yeah, and the civil servant that we're talking about here is a guy named Sir Ollie Robbins.
What has Starmer said about Mandelson's failed vetting check and Robbins' role in all this?
Well, he says that Robbins could and should have come to him and that he repeatedly withheld the information from him. So very much throwing Robbins under the bus.
A deliberate decision was taken to withhold that material. This was not a lack of asking.
What are the latest developments regarding Gaza reconstruction plans?
This wasn't an oversight. It was a decision taken not to share that information on repeated occasions.
But look, this isn't the last we're going to hear about it. Robbins has his own chance to hit back on Tuesday when he will be appearing in front of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Commons and he will be asked for his version of events.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What major changes are happening at Apple with Tim Cook's departure?
0:02–0:50
2
How is Keir Starmer addressing the Peter Mandelson vetting scandal?
0:50–1:18
3
What accusations is Starmer facing regarding the Mandelson affair?
1:18–1:45
4
What led to the revelation of Mandelson's failed vetting?
1:45–2:36
5
What role did Sir Ollie Robbins play in the Mandelson vetting controversy?
2:36–3:16
6
What implications does the Mandelson scandal have for Starmer's leadership?
3:16–4:26
7
What are the latest developments regarding Gaza reconstruction plans?
4:26–5:18
8
How are wealth advisers benefiting from the private credit boom?
5:18–12:00