Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Lord Peter Mandelson will still hold shares in the lobbying firm he co-founded as he takes up his new post as the UK’s ambassador in Washington, despite the company’s work for Chinese clients like TikTok and links to a prominent ex-adviser to Barack Obama.
Mandelson is expected to sell his stake in Global Counsel over time but has not set a deadline for fully divesting, according to people familiar with the matter. He is due to start next month as Britain’s emissary to President Donald Trump.
One of the people said Mandelson was expected to put the shares, worth millions of pounds, in a “blind trust” to ensure compliance with UK government rules until they are sold off.
The former New Labour veteran, whom UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer selected over career diplomats, was the second largest shareholder in Global Counsel with a 28 per cent stake as of June 2024, according to filings at UK Companies House. The people said his stake was smaller now.
The firm was valued at £30mn last year when Messina Group, the political consultancy founded by former Obama campaign manager Jim Messina, bought a 20 per cent stake.
Nicknamed “the Prince of Darkness” for his ability as a political operator, Mandelson was a controversial pick for the ambassador job.
He had previously called Trump a “danger to the world” and “little short of a white nationalist”. One of Trump’s top campaign strategists called Mandelson “an absolute moron” when his appointment was announced last month.
The 71-year-old was a minister in Sir Tony Blair’s New Labour government but had to resign twice; he also served under Gordon Brown. Mandelson co-founded Global Counsel in 2010 and later served as president of the Great Britain-China Centre, an arm of the UK Foreign Office. In the past he has encouraged western governments to be pragmatic in dealing with China.
In a Fox News article last week, Mandelson praised Trump’s “great skill” as a campaigner and said Beijing “now directly challenges western governments and our values”.
People familiar with the matter said Mandelson’s stake in Global Counsel had declined to around 20 per cent in the past few months. The firm’s clients have included companies like Anglo American, JPMorgan, OpenAI, Palantir and Sequoia — but also several China-linked companies.
Global Counsel lobbied for TikTok in the UK between July and September last year, according to the British lobbying regulator. TikTok remains a client, according to a person familiar with Global Counsel’s work.
The US has legislated to ban TikTok unless its owner Bytedance divests the company because of fears the app could be wielded by Beijing for espionage or to spread propaganda. TikTok has denied that it is under the influence of the Chinese government. Trump has said he is looking to allow TikTok to remain available to US users.
Global Counsel until last year also advised fast-fashion giant Shein, which was founded in China but is now headquartered in Singapore, according to the person familiar with the firm’s work.
Shein, which has been exploring a flotation in the UK, has faced allegations that minority Uyghur people are being used as forced labour in cotton supply chains in China’s Xinjiang region, some of which has made its way into Shein products. The company insists it complies with all laws and regulations of countries it operates in.
Mandelson in 2021 was the only Labour peer in the House of Lords to vote against an amendment aimed at calling out alleged genocide in Xinjiang province. He later told colleagues that having a “general genocide definition in the formulation of foreign policy” could be too sweeping and leave the government with its hands tied.
Global Counsel in 2020 also provided advice to Canyon Bridge, the person familiar with the firm’s work said. Canyon Bridge is a US-based venture company backed by Chinese funds including China Reform Holdings, a Chinese state-owned venture fund. Its portfolio includes British graphics chipmaker Imagination Technologies.
In 2020 Canyon Bridge tried to appoint four China Reform-linked directors to Imagination’s board but abandoned the move after an intervention by the UK government, the Financial Times previously reported.
Global Counsel made a loss of £1.85mn in 2023. Mandelson stepped down as a director in the wake of the deal with Messina Group but became president and chairman of Global Counsel’s international advisory board.
Mandelson and Global Counsel declined to comment. Asked about Mandelson’s links with China, Starmer’s spokesman said: “We are confident that when President Trump comes to review his credentials he will come to see the considerable experience that Lord Mandelson has and why he would make an excellent ambassador.”
Source link
