The Scottish charity regulator has announced it will investigate Glasgow's Centre for Contemporary Arts, which folded last month, due to concerns raised about its "historic financial management".
The scandal involving Labour advisor and former UK ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson has sent shockwaves through British politics, as the extent of his close friendship with sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein was revealed.
After Mandelson resigned from the House of Lords, claims were made about associations that many current politicians had with him. In Scotland, this extended to first minister John Swinney.
Posts on socialmediaclaimed Swinney had stayed in Mandelson’s residence last year when on a trip to the US.
John Swinney stayed at Peter Mandelson's US residence.- Online posts
Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it Mostly True.
Evidence
The first minister did stay with Peter Mandelson during a visit to the US in late 2025. He used the British ambassador's residence in Washington, D.C., which is inhabited by the current ambassador. This is commonplace for ministers and politicians during trips to the US. He did not stay in Mandelson’s private home.
Pictures show Mandelson and Swinney together in Washington, D.C in September 2025, during a visit when the first minister reportedly pushed for a better deal on Scotch Whisky tariffs.
He faced criticism at the time for staying with Mandelson, who was under pressure as reports emerged of his ongoing friendship with Epstein. It had recently emerged Mandelson signed a ‘birthday book’ for the disgraced financier and described him as “my best pal”. The Labour peer was sacked as ambassador soon after.
John Swinney defended his decision to stay at the British ambassador’s residence in Washington, D.C, during First Minister’s Questions at the Scottish Parliament last week.
Asked by Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser if he regretted staying in Mandelson's residence “given everything that was known” about the peer’s friendship with Epstein, Swinney told MSPs he had done so to save money.
“The first people to complain if I had chosen to spend public money staying in a hotel rather than in the British Embassy would be the Conservative Party members in this parliament,” he said.
“And just to give them all total, complete information, when I went to Lusaka in Zambia and when I went to Lilongwe in Malawi, I stayed in the British High Commissioner’s residence to make sure that I was being careful and prudent with the public purse, as the people understand me to do.”
Ferret Fact Service verdict: Mostly True
Swinney did stay at the UK ambassadorial residence in Washington, D.C. during his visit to the US in September 2025 alongside Peter Mandelson, who was using the home in his role then as ambassador. Swinney did not stay with Mandelson in his private home, and told MSPs this was done to save money.
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Alastair leads our fact-checking arm, The Ferret Fact Service, and writes about disinformation and conspiracy theories. He also delivers training on media literacy and spotting disinformation. He spends his free time at gigs in basements.
