Leaked 2022 Dossier by Christopher Steele Alleges Lord Mandelson Was Russian Contact but Provides No Proof of Knowing Cooperation

GB News reported that a leaked intelligence dossier compiled in 2022 by former MI6 Russia desk chief Christopher Steele alleges Lord Mandelson was regarded as a privileged contact by Russian intelligence agencies for more than three decades. The report, codenamed Project Fish, states that Moscow's intelligence services viewed the Labour peer as one of the most significant Russian intelligence achievements in manipulating UK politics over the past 30 years.

The dossier says the KGB first opened a file on Lord Mandelson during his time as Labour's director of communications from 1985 to 1990.

It claims he was first contacted by Soviet intelligence around 1990, shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall, and later became a privileged contact for Russian intelligence. The report alleges Russian intelligence monitored his rise through Tony Blair's government and later focused on him during his tenure as European Union trade commissioner.

GB News reported that the dossier claims Russia's foreign intelligence service compiled material on Lord Mandelson's friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that could potentially have been used as leverage.

It also references his former role on the board of Russian conglomerate Sistema and revisits 2008 allegations concerning his relationship with Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. Lord Mandelson was appointed Britain's ambassador to Washington in 2025 despite failing the highest level of security vetting over concerns relating to his connections with prominent Russian and Chinese figures.

The Metropolitan Police is investigating him over alleged leaks to Jeffrey Epstein during his time in Gordon Brown's government, and the European Union has launched an inquiry into alleged fraud or serious misconduct during his tenure as trade commissioner.