Olly Robbins has just nuked the premiership of Sir Keir Starmer

[ProudAmberTurtle]

What are the implications of Olly Robbins’s testimony for Starmer?

There was so much in his testimony that was damaging but surely the worst was that:

• He was instructed by No. 10 to find an ambassador's job for Starmer's then director of communications, Matthew Doyle
• He was told not to tell the foreign secretary about this
• Robbins considered leaving his role because this request was so unusual and inappropriate
• Doyle was then suspended from the Labour Party due to his links with a convicted paedophile (not Epstein).

And on Mandelson, he said there was "constant pressure" for him to fast-track the appointment, there was no interest in the vetting from the PM, concerns about the vetting were dismissed by No. 10 and Mandelson had already been given IT access that should only have been granted after the vetting process.

What can Starmer do now? Say Robbins was lying?

You’re not saying much other than OR should have been clearer - when and how?

It's also the most irrelevant part of this whole mess. Nobody needed notes or vetting to tell them that Mandelson was a wrong 'un with links to Russia, China and Epstein.

Exactly. He knew The Dark Lord's history. He knew what had come out of due diligence was not good, Simon Case said don't appoint him until after vetting. And KS appointed him anyway. Why? Because he wanted to and was willing to gamble national security on it. And he lost.

I used to work as a PS in PR-OFF (for a Tory SofS as it happens) so just saying what I know.

After months of investigation by the Guardian, it was the best they could come up with.

It’s irrelevant and a bizarre focus from Labour. UKSV will have evidence at their end.

Agree. NF has been in politics for decades and has been the focus of people trying to get something on him all that time. There's really not much to see.

I heard one of the "victims" on Radio 4. Almost immediately went into a diatribe about Brexit and NFs involvement in it. It was rather embarrassing how he wanted to make a political point so much that he tainted any story he may have had about NFs childhood behaviour.

Out of all the parts of this… it’s note taking

@Pineneedlesincarpet I listened to Starmer today and agree with you. Note Robbins had his Trades Union rep behind him yesterday. This will end up in a Tribunal.

I think OR said as much. He indicated at the end there will be more info on KSs behaviour to come which he can't say now due to his future employment claim. He was masterful in the care he took about exactly what he could and couldn't say. A true diplomat.