Mandelson Failed Security Vetting: The Prime Minister Speaks Out

<p>Today, Keir Starmer says it's "staggering" he was not told Lord Mandelson had failed security vetting for his appointment as US ambassador.</p><p>Speaking from a summit in France, the prime minister says he's "absolutely furious" and will update MPs in Parliament on Monday. Opposition leaders are calling on Starmer to resign, accusing him of "catastrophically poor judgement" and of being "incompetent, gullible or a liar. Adam and Chris go through the details and discuss how damaging this could be.</p><p>And, we take a deep dive into the Scottish Parliament elections, with cost of living, immigration and energy top of the agenda.Adam is joined by Alex Forsyth, James Cook and pollster and director of More in Common, Luke Tryl to look at what the parties are promising as they go head to head in their first debates. </p><p>You can now listen to Newscast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Newscast”. It works on most smart speakers.

You can join our Newscast online community here: https://bbc.in/newscastdiscord</p><p>Get in touch with Newscast by emailing newscast@bbc.co.uk or send us a WhatsApp on +44 0330 123 9480.</p><p>New episodes released every day. If you're in the UK, for more News and Current Affairs podcasts from the BBC, listen on BBC Sounds: https://bbc.in/4guXgXd

Newscast brings you daily analysis of the latest political news stories from the BBC. The presenter was Adam Fleming. It was made by Jack Maclaren and Anna Harris with Shiler Mahmoudi. The social producer was Grace Braddock. The technical producer was Mike Regaard. The assistant editor is Chris Gray. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.</p>