Key questions facing government over Mandelson vetting

The prime minister will appear before MPs on Monday to explain what went wrong, after it emerged that Lord Mandelson did not pass initial security vetting checks ahead of taking up the role of ambassador to the United States. But there are some key questions that remain unanswered. The prime minster has said he only found out this week that Lord Mandelson had failed developed vetting (DV) – an intrusive process designed to ensure that people with access to secret information, like ambassadors, do not pose a potential security risk. A day before Lord Mandelson was sacked last September, the prime minister told MPs that "full due process" had been followed during his appointment. But the day after the peer was dismissed, The Independent raised questions about that process, reporting that Lord Mandelson may not have passed security checks. On Friday, he insisted he "was not told" the peer had failed vetting, something he described as "staggering" and "completely unacceptable". But opposition parties have cast doubt on his version of events. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has branded his explanation "completely preposterous". In February this year Sir Keir went further, saying that