The Epstein ring & the exposure of Peter Mandelson reveals a lot about how power works. On one level, the corruption - politically, morally, personally, sexually - of the super rich (their misogynist depravity, lack of humanity, extraordinary selfishness & ego). On another, how that plays out in politics - in wild, hyper consumerism, casino finance, war, genocide & neoliberal adventures.

But just like anything, we’d be wrong to ignore the structural dimensions. That someone as rotten as Mandelson could play such a central role in our politics, in a Labour Party founded by trade unionists & socialists, tells a story much bigger than the rancid personal details.

Mandelson wasn’t just anyone & he didn’t become so central strategically because of Machiavellian manoeuvres, but because he was necessary to make that party safe for the rich, for neoliberalism, for outsourcing, for privatisation. He was the fixer. He relied on the complicity of many in the labour movement who needed the Labour Party to be safe too. New Labour was that vehicle.

So, it’s not just about Starmer. He’s just the latest manifestation, someone who brought in Mandelson as a symbol of his connection & support for New Labour & that political model. No, it’s not just that. It’s about our relationship to big business & establishment politics. It’s about playing the game. Now that game has been revealed as vile, seedy, depraved, corrupt, violent, genocidal & illegal, I wonder if the penny will finally drop?