Starmer ally hints at more pragmatic approach to ties with China

Lord Peter Mandelson, once Labour's formidable spin doctor, discusses the challenges facing the new UK government.

- Bhavan Iaipragas

The adults are back in charge in London after 14 years of Tory-led chaos.

Lord Peter Mandelson, the British Labour Party grandee, did not say this outright in his Sept 20 interview with The Straits Times, but the message was unmistakable.

Gone was the bluster that Asia had come to expect from certain senior Tories.

Instead, the man once dubbed Labour's "Prince of Darkness" for his masterful spin and media management was measured, his tone almost mirroring the very trait that critics often associate with Prime Minister Keir Starmer: bland managerial speak.

Lord Mandelson, 70, has re-emerged at the centre of British politics as one of Mr Starmer's closest advisers since Labour handed the Tories their worst defeat in 190 years in July's general election.

A life peer in the House of Lords since 2008, Lord Mandelson once described himself as the "half" of the "two-and-a-half musketeers", alongside Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, who reshaped Labour into "New Labour" and led it to three consecutive general election victories.

Now, Prime Minister Starmer is tapping into Lord Mandelson's vast experience in foreign policy, trade and relations with Asia. Another prestigious role may also be on the horizon: He is in the running to become the next chancellor of Oxford University, in what is being described as the most competitive race for the position ever.

In Singapore for the Davos-like summitry that accompanies Formula One week, Lord Mandelson noted that the chief concern among the officials and business leaders he met was the stability of British politics. Mr Starmer rose to power with a promise to "restore politics as a force for good" after the scandal-ridden Conservative years.

Asian decision-makers, Lord Mandelson observed, had witnessed "not only the senseless decision over Brexit but all the indecision and division that followed... as the battle continued to be fought out in the Conservative Party".