Lord Mandelson Set to Be Appointed UK Ambassador to the US

Lord Mandelson is shortly to be named as the next ambassador of the UK to the US. 

The Labour stalwart once held several ministerial posts in the Internships of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown before receiving a life peerage in the Lords and was now considered to have been one of the top contenders for the position. 

He is set to replace Dame Karen Pierce, who will see her posting in Washington, DC, end early 2025. 

One of the engines of New Labour, Lord Mandelson was considered near the top in terms of advising Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer ahead of the 2024 election. He was also a co-host of the Times "How To Win An Election" podcast during the campaign and held the positions of trustee of the Design Museum and chancellor of Manchester Metropolitan University.

His name was resounded concerning the chancellorship of the University of Oxford, as he was once a student there, but the seat eventually went to the former Conservative leader, Lord William Hague. 

Former UK ambassador to the US Sir David Manning, 2003-2007, described Lord Mandelson as "quite a very articulate, highly intelligent, and extremely experienced operator" on BBC Radio 4's The World Tonight. 

But it warned that there would be all kinds of "contentious and challenging issues" such as climate change, relations with China, and also the situation in the Middle East. 

Lord Mandelson, 71, told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that no one had ever approached him about the ambassadorial position.

Still, he said that he preferred a "new association rather than a particular kind of relationship" with the US and that he was keen to offer counsel on trade to whoever got appointed.

His appointment comes just under the wire for the start of inauguration day for President-elect Donald Trump on January 20.

Trump has promised to impose sweeping tariffs on his first day in office, a move experts warn could end up costing the UK £22bn.

On Thursday, Sir Keir said that the UK "need to avert tariffs" in the wake of Trump's statement and stated his ambition for improved trade relations with Washington.

The appointment was communicated to both the White House and the Trump campaign before the announcement.