UK leader Keir Starmer fired his ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, after new revelations about the diplomat's friendship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Dubbed the "Prince of Darkness" during his career as a media PR, Mandelson was forced to resign twice from Tony Blair's Labour government in the late 1990s and early 2000s over allegations of misconduct.

The Foreign Office said the prime minister had asked Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper to withdraw Mandelson as ambassador "in light" of newly revealed emails he had written to Epstein.

"The emails show that the depth and extent of Peter Mandelson's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein are significantly different from those known at the time of his appointment," the statement quoted by AFP said.

"In particular, Peter Mandelson's suggestion that Jeffrey Epstein's first conviction was wrong and should be challenged is new information. In light of this and in consideration of the victims of Epstein's crimes, he has been removed from his position as ambassador with immediate effect," it added.

The dismissal came after The Sun and Bloomberg reported that Mandelson had sent supportive messages to Epstein while the financier was under investigation in the US for sex crimes in 2008.

In the emails, the senior Labour Party member told Epstein that he was "keeping a close eye on things and is available when you need him" and urged him to "remember the art of war" when dealing with prosecutors.

Mandelsohn also told Epstein to "fight for early release" shortly before he received an 18-month sentence for admitting to procuring a child for prostitution.

"I respect you very much," Mandelson, a former Labour Party minister, former European trade commissioner, and political spin doctor, wrote the day before Epstein began serving his sentence.

After this information was published, the 71-year-old Mandelson told the BBC that he "trusted assurances of his innocence, which later proved to be horribly untrue." | BGNES