British Prime Minister Keir Starmer fired UK Ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson on Thursday over Mandelson's ties with disgraced New York financier Jeffrey Epstein.  

Pressure had been mounting on Starmer to remove Mandelson, 71, following the publication of a series of emails between the ambassador and the convicted sex offender, who is now deceased. 

James Roscoe, the UK deputy head of mission in Washington, will serve as interim ambassador.

What has been said of Mandelson's dismissal?

Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty said in response to a question in parliament that "[i]n light of the additional information in the emails written by Peter Mandelson, the prime minister has asked the foreign secretary to withdraw him as ambassador to the United States."

"The emails show ... that the depth and extent of Lord Mandelson's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein is materially different from that known at the time of his appointment."

A Foreign Office statement said that "[i]n particular Peter Mandelson's suggestion that Jeffrey Epstein's first conviction was wrongful and should be challenged is new information. In light of that, and mindful of the victims of Epstein's crimes, he has been withdrawn as ambassador with immediate effect."

Mandelson is a Labour politician who played leading roles in the governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.

He was widely dubbed the "Prince of Darkness" while he was Labour's director of communications from 1985 and 1990 because of his alleged ruthlessness in dealing with the press and was twice forced to resign from Blair's Labour government in the late 1990s and early 2000s over allegations of misconduct.

What do we know about the Mandelson-Epstein relationship?

On Wednesday, The Sun newspaper published emails that it said showed Mandelson telling Epstein to "fight for early release" shortly before Epstein was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Mandelson also told Epstein "I think the world of you " before the financier began a sentence for soliciting prostitution from a minor in June 2008.

A note from Mandelson also appears in a 50th birthday album compiled for Epstein in 2003 in which the British politician calls Epstein "my best pal."

On Wednesday, Mandelson said he deeply regretted ever meeting Epstein and that he had kept up his association with the latter "for far longer than I should have done." 

He also told the BBC that he "relied on assurances of his [Epstein's] innocence that turned out later to be horrendously false."

Edited by: Elizabeth Schumacher