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Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson, PC (born 21 October 1953) is a British Labour politician who is the current First Secretary of State, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, President of the Board of Trade and Lord President of the Council. Together with Tony Blair and Gordon Brown he was a key architect in the rebranding of the Labour Party as "New Labour" and its subsequent victory in the 1997 general election.[1] Mandelson served as Member of Parliament for Hartlepool for twelve years (from 1992), a seat he vacated in order to become a European Commissioner (2004–2008). He twice resigned from Tony Blair's government while holding Cabinet positions. After his second resignation he served as the European Commissioner for Trade for almost four years. He rejoined the government when he was made a life peer by Gordon Brown and took his seat in the House of Lords on 13 October 2008.[2]
[edit] Early lifeMandelson was born in London in 1953, where his father was the advertising manager at The Jewish Chronicle. On his mother's side, he is the grandson of Herbert Morrison, the London County Council leader and Labour cabinet minister. He was educated at Hendon County Grammar School. He read Philosophy, Politics and Economics at St Catherine's College, Oxford (1973-1976) and, in the late 1970s became director of the British Youth Council. As BYC director, he was a delegate in 1978 to the Soviet-organised World Festival of Youth and Students in Havana, Cuba, with Arthur Scargill and several future Labour cabinet colleagues.[3][4] He was elected to Lambeth Borough Council in September 1979, but retired in 1982, disillusioned with the state of Labour politics.[5] [edit] Media and public relationsHe worked as a television producer at London Weekend Television on Weekend World, before being appointed as the Labour Party's Director of Communications in 1985. Mandelson was able to secure close friendships within the Labour Party due to uncle Alexander Butler who had worked alongside many important Labour politicians during the 1960s. In this role he was one of the first people in Britain to whom the term "spin doctor" was applied; In relation to this he has been referred to as the "Prince of Darkness"[6][7] (originally coined in the satirical magazine Private Eye). In 1986 he ran the campaign at the Fulham by-election that saw Labour defeat the Conservative Party. Mandelson managed the Labour Party's 1987 general election campaign. He is author (with Roger Liddle) of The Blair Revolution (1996). More recently, he contributed to the book The City in Europe and the World (2005). [edit] Member of ParliamentHe ceased being a Labour Party official in 1990, when he was selected as Labour candidate for the safe seat of Hartlepool. He was elected to the House of Commons at the 1992 general election.[8] [edit] Shadow cabinetHe made several speeches outlining his strong support for the European Union. He was close to two Shadow Cabinet members, Gordon Brown and Tony Blair, each regarded as potential future leaders, though he was sidelined during the brief period when John Smith led the party. After Smith's sudden death in 1994, Mandelson chose to back Blair for the leadership believing him to be a superior communicator to Brown[9] and played a leading role in the leadership campaign. This created antagonism between Mandelson and Brown, though they are now considered allies in the Labour Party.[10] Mandelson became a close ally and trusted adviser to Blair. He was Labour's election Campaign Director for the 1997 general election, which Labour won by a landslide.[11] [edit] Government ministerHe was appointed as a Minister without Portfolio in the Cabinet Office, where his job was to co-ordinate within government. A few months later, he also acquired responsibility for the Millennium Dome, after Blair decided to go ahead with the project despite the opposition of most of the Cabinet (including the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport who had been running it). Jennie Page, the Dome Chief Executive was abruptly sacked after a farcical opening night. She gave evidence to a House of Commons Select Committee for Culture and Heritage in June 2000. In what was seen as a reference to the close interest in the Dome from Mandelson, known at the time as so-called "Dome Secretary", and his successor Lord Falconer of Thoroton, Ms Page told the committee: "I made several attempts to persuade ministers that standing back from the Dome would be good for them as well as good for the Dome".[12] In July 1998, he joined the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. He launched the Millennium Bug And Electronic Commerce Bill and a Competitiveness White Paper, which he described, as 'bold, far reaching and absolutely necessary'. He also appointed a Net czar to lead the UK in what he termed the "new industrial revolution". In 1998 he was appointed a Privy Councillor. [edit] First resignationMandelson had bought a home in Notting Hill in 1996 with the assistance of an interest-free loan of £373,000 from Geoffrey Robinson, a millionaire Labour MP who was also in the Government, but was subject to an inquiry into his business dealings by Mandelson's department.[13] Mandelson contended that he had deliberately not taken part in any decisions relating to Robinson. He should have declared the loan in the Register of Members' Interests and he resigned on 23 December 1998.[13] Mandelson had also not declared the loan to his building society (the Britannia) although they decided not to take any action, with the CEO stating "I am satisfied that the information given to us at the time of the mortgage application was accurate."[14] Mandelson initially thought he could weather the press storm, but had to resign when it became clear that the Prime Minister thought nothing else would clear the air.[15] On 16 October 2000 it was reported that Geoffrey Robinson, the Labour MP, "accused Peter Mandelson of lying to the Commons about the home loan affair that cost both of them their Government jobs."[16][17] He was out of the Cabinet for ten months. In October 1999, he was appointed Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, replacing Mo Mowlam. In his very first speech in the post he mistakenly referred to himself as the "Secretary of State for Ireland."[18] During his tenure he oversaw the creation of the devolved legislative assembly and power-sharing executive, and reform of the police service. [edit] Second resignationOn 24 January 2001 Mandelson resigned from the Government for a second time following accusations of using his position to influence a passport application.[19][20] He had contacted Home Office minister Mike O'Brien on behalf of Srichand Hinduja, an Indian businessman who was seeking British citizenship, and whose family firm was to become the main sponsor of the "Faith Zone" in the Millennium Dome. At the time, Hinduja and his brothers were under investigation by the Indian government for alleged involvement in the Bofors scandal. Mandelson insisted he had done nothing wrong and was exonerated by an independent inquiry by Sir Anthony Hammond which concluded that neither Mandelson nor anyone else had acted improperly. The front page headline in The Independent read in part "Passport to Oblivion".[21] At the 2001 general election, Mandelson was challenged by Arthur Scargill of the Socialist Labour Party and by John Booth, a former Labour Party press officer standing as "Genuine Labour",[22] but Mandelson was re-elected with a large majority.[23] This prompted him to make an exuberant acceptance speech, which was televised live, in which he declared that "I'm a fighter, not a quitter"[1] and referred to his "inner steel". Despite Labour success in the June 2001 general election a third appointment to the Cabinet did not happen and he indicated his interest in becoming the United Kingdom's European Commissioner when the new Commission was established in 2004. Both of Britain's Commissioners, Neil Kinnock and Chris Patten, were due to stand down. Appointment as a Commissioner would require his resignation from Parliament and therefore a by-election in his Hartlepool constituency. His appointment was announced in the summer and on 8 September 2004 Mandelson resigned his seat through appointment as Steward of the Manor of Northstead .[24] [25] Labour won the subsequent Hartlepool by-election with a majority of more than 2,000.[26] During the Parliamentary expenses scandal of 2009 the Daily Telegraph raised questions about the timing of Mandelson’s second home allowance claim, dating from 2004, saying, "Lord Mandelson billed the taxpayer for almost £3,000 of work on his constituency home in Hartlepool less than a week after announcing his decision to stand down as an MP." Lord Mandelson said in a statement, "The work done was necessary maintenance. All claims made were reasonable and submitted consistent with Parliamentary rules."[27] [edit] European CommissionOn 22 November 2004, Mandelson became Britain's European Commissioner for Trade. On 22 April 2005, The Times revealed that Mandelson had spent the previous New Year's Eve on the yacht of Paul Allen, the co-founder of Microsoft, which was at the centre of a major EU investigation, although it did not allege impropriety.[28] During the summer of 2008, Mandelson had a widely publicised disagreement with Nicolas Sarkozy, the President of France.[1] Sarkozy accused him of trying to sell out European farmers and appeared to blame his handling of the Doha round of trade talks for the "no" vote in the Irish referendum on the Treaty of Lisbon. Mandelson said his position at world trade talks has been undermined and told the BBC he did not start the row but: "I stood up for myself, I'm not to be bullied." He said he believed the row was over but renewed his warnings on protectionism.[1] In 2008, melamine added to milk in China caused kidney stones and other ailments in thousands of Chinese children, and killed at least six. To show his confidence in Chinese dairy products, Mandelson drank a glass of Chinese yoghurt in front of reporters. The following week, he was hospitalised for a kidney stone; despite the apparent irony, the events were probably unconnected.[29][30] In October 2008, Mandelson was reported to have maintained private contacts over several years with Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, most recently on holiday in August 2008 on Deripaska's yacht at Taverna Agni on the Greek island of Corfu.[31] News of the contacts sparked criticism because, as European Union trade commissioner, Mandelson had been responsible for two decisions to cut aluminium tariffs that had benefited Deripaska's United Company RusAl.[32] Mandelson denied that there had been a conflict of interest and insisted that he had never discussed aluminium tariffs with Deripaska.[33] On 26 October 2008, the Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague claimed the "whole country" wanted "transparency" about Mandelson's previous meetings with Deripaska. In response, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Mandelson's dealings with Deripaska had been "found to be above board".[34] Mandelson said that meeting business figures from "across the range" in emerging economies was part of his brief as EU trade commissioner.[35] On 29 October 2008, while Mandelson was on a ministerial visit to Moscow,[36] it was alleged in the British press that, head of security at Deripaska's company Basic Element Valery Pechenkin had organised a swift entry visa for Mandelson when he turned up in Moscow to visit Deripaska in 2005.[37] In October 2008 he left his post as Trade Commissioner to return to UK politics. As a former EU commissioner, Lord Mandelson is entitled to a £31,000 pension when he reaches the age of 65 years. This, however, is contingent on a "duty of loyalty to the Communities" which applies also after his term in office. The Taxpayers' Alliance, which uncovered the potential threat to his pension, demanded that he should declare it as a conflict of interest, and either forgo his EU pension payments or resign as a minister. "When one considers that his new ministerial post deals specifically with Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform – all areas that are intimately involved with EU legislation, regulation and policy –" the group said, "the conflict of interest is even more stark." However, Mandelson's spokesperson denied there is a conflict of interest: "He has always had a clear view of British interests and how they are best secured by our EU membership".[38] [edit] Return to UK government[edit] Life Peerage On 3 October 2008, as part of Gordon Brown's cabinet reshuffle, it was announced amid some controversy[39][40] that Mandelson would return to government in the re-drawn post of Business Secretary, and would be made a life peer, entitling him to a seat in the House of Lords.[41][42] On 13 October 2008 he was created Baron Mandelson, of Foy in the County of Herefordshire and of Hartlepool in the County of Durham,[43][44] and took his seat in the House of Lords the same day. Since returning to office, Lord Mandelson has supported the planned Heathrow airport expansion.[45] On 6 March 2009, the environmental protester Leila Deen of anti-aviation group Plane Stupid approached him outside a summit on the government's Low Carbon Industrial Strategy and threw a cup of green custard in his face, in protest over his support for a third runway at Heathrow airport. The protester was cautioned on 9 April for causing "harassment, alarm or distress".[46][47] [edit] First Secretary of StateIn a cabinet reshuffle on 5 June 2009, Lord Mandelson was appointed to the honorific office of First Secretary of State, and to the position of Lord President of the Council.[48] It was also announced that his powers as Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills were to be enhanced, and that he would continue as President of the Board of Trade.[48][49] Mandelson is a member of 35 of the 43 Cabinet committees and subcommittees.[50] An opinion poll conducted by the centre-left think tank Compass found that Mandelson is proving to be more popular with rank and file party members than Deputy Party Leader Harriet Harman. This was claimed to be surprising due to Mandelson's previously-strained relationship with grassroots members, set against Harman's record of success winning grassroots votes in her election as Deputy. It was also seen to be prophetic, and to tie-in with Tony Blair's quote that his "mission would be completed when the Labour Party learned to love [Peter] Mandelson".[51] In August 2009, The Independent reported that unnamed Whitehall sources had said Mandelson was persuaded of the need to try to reduce illegal file-sharing after an intensive lobbying campaign from influential foreign people in the entertainment and banking industries.[52] The Independent also reported that this included a meeting with DreamWorks co-founder David Geffen at the Rothschild family villa on the Greek island of Corfu. Lord Mandelson's spokesperson said that there had been no discussion of internet piracy during the Corfu dinner.[53] The Times reported after the Corfu meeting that an unnamed Whitehall source had said, "Until the past week Mandelson had shown little personal interest in the Digital Britain agenda. According to The Times, their unnamed source further speculated that apparently Mandelson returned from holiday and effectively issued this edict that the regulation needs to be tougher."[54] Mandelson denied that the two events were linked.[53] [edit] Personal lifeIn October 1998, during his first period in the Cabinet, Mandelson was the centre of media attention when Matthew Parris (openly gay former MP and then Parliamentary sketch writer of The Times) mentioned during a live interview on Newsnight, in the wake of the resignation of Ron Davies, that "Peter Mandelson is certainly gay".[55] In 2000, Peter Mandelson publicly recognised his long term relationship with his long-time partner, Reinaldo Avila da Silva by allowing photographs of them together.[56] Mandelson also acquired the nickname "Mandy" by reference to his surname.[57] Tam Dalyell, while Father of the House of Commons, claimed Mandelson formed part of Blair's 'Jewish cabal' in May 2003. In response Mandelson said: "Apart from the fact that I am not actually Jewish, I wear my father's parentage with pride."[58] Mandelson was, until 8 October 2008, the president of Central School of Speech and Drama.[59] He was replaced in this unremunerated post by playwright Harold Pinter, who died some weeks later. In 1999 and 2009, Mandelson was an invited guest of the Bilderberg Group and attended the annual conferences.[60][61] [edit] References
[edit] Further reading
[edit] External links
[edit] Offices held
Categories: 1953 births | Living people | Alumni of St Catherine's College, Oxford | British European Commissioners | Political scandals in the United Kingdom | British political writers | Lord Presidents of the Council | First Secretaries of State of the United Kingdom | European Commissioners | Fellows of the British-American Project | Gay politicians | Labour MPs (UK) | Life peers | LGBT people from England | LGBT politicians from the United Kingdom | Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom | Members of the United Kingdom Parliament for English constituencies | People from Hendon | Secretaries of State for Northern Ireland | UK MPs 1992-1997 | UK MPs 1997-2001 | UK MPs 2001-2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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