Mandelson Firm’s Conflicts Endured as Losses Blocked Buy-Out

Peter Mandelson’s advisory firm Global Counsel allowed the risk of conflicts of interest to persist for months after he was appointed Britain’s ambassador to the US because the loss-making company was unable to buy out his multimillion pound stake.

Global Counsel, which Mandelson co-founded with former Labour adviser Benjamin Wegg-Prosser in 2010, provided assurances when he was appointed last December that it would prevent potential conflicts arising by acquiring his 28% shareholding.