Peter Mandelson told Jeffrey Epstein he was “trying hard” to change government policy on bankers’ bonuses at his request, months after the convicted sex trafficker had paid thousands of pounds to the then UK business secretary’s husband.
Emails released by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) on Friday shed new light on the closeness of the relationship between the disgraced financier and Lord Mandelson, who was sacked as British ambassador to Washington last year.
The documents include correspondence in September 2009 between Epstein and Lord Mandelson‘s husband, Reinaldo Avila da Silva, who asked the financier to pay him £10,000 to fund an osteopathy course and other expenses.
Epstein responds “I will wire your loan amount immediate’y” [sic].
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A few days later, Mr da Silva, who married Lord Mandelson in 2023, replied “thank you for the money which arrived in my account this morning”.
Epstein was released from prison in July 2009, having pleaded guilty to trafficking a minor.
In separate emails, exchanged in December 2009, Lord Mandelson, then business secretary in Gordon Brown’s government, appears to agree to try to change government policy on taxing bankers’ bonuses.
Coming just 18 months after the great financial crash and subsequent state rescue of banks, the subject was highly contentious.
On 9 December 2009, the then chancellor Alistair Darling announced a 50% “super tax” on bonuses, intended to prevent pay being inflated by taxpayer-funded bailouts.
Peter Mandelson was sacked as British ambassador to the US last year
In an email exchange on 15 December, in which email addresses are redacted, Epstein asked Mandelson if the policy could be changed.
“any [sic] real chance of making the…
