Peter Mandelson referred to FBI as Starmer's US ambassador pick faces probe over 'damning' China links

The file is said to detail Mandelson's role as an adviser to the China-based global investment bank CICC, a connection which he did not declare in the House of Lords register, Australian outlet The Nightly revealed.

It also lists a number of visits to China where the peer met with top officials, including a 2019 meeting with Zhou Yubo, then the Secretary of the CPC Committee and chairman of China Guoxin.

The peer has been a strong advocate of closer economic ties with China, even writing an article in 2018 warning that Trump’s antipathy to China was "putting free trade at risk."

Asked whether he was confident of passing a US security check given his business dealings in China, Mandelson told The Nightly: "I have had no business dealings in China."

But the file is reported to contain multiple instances of Chinese Communist Party figures praising or thanking the Labour peer for working with state enterprises.

The Chinese internet also boasts a list of examples of Mandelson visiting China with advisory firm Global Counsel and meeting top-level figures.

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In March 2014 Lord Mandelson met Huang Shuhe - then the deputy director of the Chinese state-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council.

A Chinese readout of the meeting on the Chinese internet said: "Mr Mandelson introduced the business situation of Global Counsel and the cases of cooperation with central enterprises."

In response, Huang Shuhe said he "hoped that Global Counsel would continue to provide quality services for central enterprises to further enhance their international competitiveness."

Pressed by The Nightly on his denial business dealings in China given these specific examples, Mandelson did not respond.

Long-time China hawk Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP told GB News he had seen the report - and its contents were "damning".

The news that the file has been passed to the FBI will doubtless be met with glee by Donald Trump's co-campaign manager Chris LaCivita, who described Mandelson as "an absolute moron" when his nomination for the ambassadorship was announced.

Starmer has previously said that he believes that Mandelson has the trade expertise and networking abilities to bolster the UK's interests during a delicate period for relations with the US.

The Prime Minister has also maintained that he believes his Government can have "a constructive relationship" with Trump's White House - despite a long list of comments from himself and other Labour top brass slating the President.

The Prime Minister said before Trump's inauguration: "What matters to me is my relationship with the US and my relationship with the President-elect," and added that he hopes to get a trade deal "of some sort" with the US during the Trump presidency.