Watch the moment Stephen Dixon slapped down a Labour Minister on GB News after the MP backed Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership over the Lord Mandelson scandal.

Home Office Minister Mike Tapp repeatedly cited the Prime Minister’s apology over appointing the disgraced peer as ambassador to the US – despite being aware of his friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein last February.

He said: “The Prime Minister has apologised to the victims here for believing these lies and obviously for the appointment. Now, that means a lot to me.

“I just want to also apologise and extend that, because the victims have to be at the heart of this.

“And, you know, in my previous career at the National Crime Agency, I’ve actually searched the room of a little girl who was victim of grooming for evidence of that.

“So every time we talk about this, that’s what matters. And Keir Starmer has apologised. He’s also said that there will be full transparency here.

“So all of these documents around vetting and such will be released to the public so that decision can be made.

“And I think that’s really important because leadership and Government is about owning mistakes even when they’re made. And that’s what we’re seeing here from the Prime Minister.”

Sir Keir has faced numerous calls to stand down from his leadership, including Labour big beast Harriet Harman, who has described Sir Keir is appearing “gullible and weak”.

Mr Tapp hit back, saying: “With absolute respect to Baroness Harman, she hasn’t seen the files. Neither have I, neither have the public.

“But I do know that Keir Starmer is a good man. I do know that he means it when he apologises.”

The Dover & Deal MP reverently added he “trusted” the Prime Minister on the matter, saying: “I’m confident that when these files are released, the public will agree with that.”

On Lord Mandelson, Mr Tapp echoed the thoughts – and lines – of his boss, slamming: “He lied, he tricked, he weaseled.

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“And it’s those lies and tricks that Keir Starmer has apologised for believing.”

He continued: “I’m not putting blame here on those that are conducting the vetting. The Government is ultimately responsible, and we’ve got to own this. And that’s why the apology is important.

“But it’s also why the transparency is vital so that all of those documents are released. So we can deal with this and make sure nothing like this ever happens again.”

However, Stephen Dixon was dissatisfied with his reponse, steering Mr Tapp back on course by bluntly saying: “I think you’ve missed the point slightly.

“When the announcement was made that Peter Mandelson was going to be US ambassador, certainly in every newsroom and actually up and down in pubs, up and down the country, people went ‘you’ve got to be kidding’.

“Mandelson of all people. He had a reputation, nothing to do with Epstein, but because of his dodgy dealings that caused him to resign twice before.

“You cannot imagine why the Prime Minister or Morgan McSweeney decided that he should be the man from the job.”

Just as Sir Keir has fallen under immense scrutiny for his actions, his Chief of Staff Mr McSweeney has received plenty of calls to stand down from his advisory role.

With the PM’s right-hand man widely-credited for the party’s resounding success at the last General Election, many believe the strategist’s time could be up on Downing Street.

Responding to the host, Mr Tapp said: “We’ve also got to remember there were lots of people who were supporting that appointment.

“And we’ve also got to remember that Keir Starmer was decisive on this. The moment he found out in September, he fired him.

“He’s also removed him from the Privy Council. He’s stripping him of his title. And there’s a police investigation going on, and he’s being fully transparent by releasing all of the files around vetting for us all to see.

“That’s owning a mistake. And I think that’s leadership. That’s what we expect from Government, and that’s what we’re seeing to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”

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