Lobbying firm co-founded by Mandelson goes into administration

Global Counsel, the lobbying firm co-founded by Peter Mandelson, has gone into administration.

It comes after leading clients cut ties with the company after details emerged of Lord Mandelson's apparent links with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

This had a "monumental impact on the business" and left its directors with "no option", administrator Interpath said in a statement on Friday.

A senior source said the company's collapse was a "total nightmare and unfair", adding it risked the loss of 120 jobs.

Global Counsel had warned on Thursday there would be "a significant number of redundancies being made by the administrators when they take control of the company".

The firm has offices in Berlin, Brussels, Singapore, Washington DC and Doha.

Lord Mandelson resigned from the board of Global Counsel in 2024, though he remained a shareholder until earlier this month. His co-founder, Benjamin Wegg-Prosser, stepped down as chief executive on 6 February.

The firm's future was thrown into question following the publication of documents from the Epstein files, which cast light on Lord Mandelson's links with the disgraced financier.