Benjamin Wegg-Prosser: Oliver Coppard removes economic advisor after Jeffrey Epstein links revealed
An economic adviser to South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard has been removed from the position after his links to Jeffrey Epstein came to light.
Benjamin Wegg-Prosser, a former communications director for Tony Blair when he was Prime Minister, has been revealed to have been in personal contact with Jeffrey Epstein following the latter's conviction for sex offences in 2008. Epstein had pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution and soliciting a minor and was sentenced to 18 months in prison under a controversial deal not to be prosecuted for more serious federal crimes.
Mr Wegg-Prosser announced on Friday lunchtime he was stepping down as the boss of Global Counsel, the lobbying firm he co-founded with Peter Mandelson in November 2010, in the wake of the controversy.
He had also been part of a ‘Mayoral Economic Advisory Council’ to South Yorkshire mayor Oliver Coppard, which was set up in January 2024 as part of efforts “to fortify South Yorkshire's position as a thriving business hub”.
Following inquiries by The Yorkshire Post on Friday morning as to whether Mr Wegg-Prosser’s role on the council was under review in light of disclosures contained within recent Epstein document releases by the US authorities, a SYMCA spokesperson confirmed on Friday afternoon that his involvement in the council has now been ended by Mr Coppard.
The spokesperson said: “South Yorkshire's Mayor Oliver Coppard has removed Ben Wegg-Prosser from his role as a member of SYMCA's economic advisory council.
“Mr Wegg-Prosser's role and interest in South Yorkshire stemmed from his time as a student at the University of Sheffield. His position was voluntary and not remunerated. He attended four meetings between January 2024 and September 2025.”
His profile on the SYMCA economic council page, which was still live on Friday morning, has already been deleted.
Recently-released documents by the US Department of Justice reveal Epstein had a scheduled meeting with a ‘Ben Wegg-Prosser’ on March 2, 2010 following Lord Mandelson emailing him the month before to say “Ben is coming to NYC to meet you and explain the business plan”.
On the day of the meeting, Lord Mandelson wrote to Epstein saying, “Be nice to Ben. He is a very able organiser of life and its opportunties. And he watches my back big time”.
Epstein replied five hours later saying “Ben is media sensitive, good communication instincts”. But he added that he “is young and unaware of his limitations” and “has feeble business acumen”.
The files reveal a further message between Mr Wegg-Prosser and Epstein in May 2010 when he asked for the latter man’s mobile number to provide a password for opening documents.
In January 2011, Mr Wegg-Prosser forwarded on advice he had received from businessman James Palumbo assessing Global Counsel’s opening months in business to Mandelson, describing the note as “helpful”. This was then forwarded by Mandelson to Epstein, who replied saying “good stuff”.
Mr Wegg-Prosser has been contacted for comment about the SYMCA decision.
It comes as Global Counsel cut all ties with Peter Mandelson and announced the departure of its boss Mr Wegg-Prosser.
Global Counsel said Lord Mandelson no longer has a stake in the business nor any influence over it.
Co-founder and chief executive Mr Wegg-Prosser said he was stepping down as it was “time to draw a line” between the firm and the “actions” of Lord Mandelson.
The business had been coming under pressure over its association with Lord Mandelson and his relationship with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Global Counsel said in a statement that it had reached an agreement to fully divest the peer’s shares in the company, therefore ending any connections with him.
Its chairman, Archie Norman, said: “With the completion of this process today, Peter Mandelson no longer has any shareholding, role or association with Global Counsel and has no influence over the firm in any capacity.
“Global Counsel is independently governed and led and continues to focus on serving its clients with integrity and professionalism.”
Mr Wegg-Prosser said: “With the completion of the divestment of Peter Mandelson’s stake in the business, I feel that now is the time to draw a line between Global Counsel and his actions.
“I have nothing but immense pride in the business I founded and the work our amazing team deliver every day.”
He has been replaced as head of the firm by its managing director Rebecca Park, and his page on the company’s website has already been taken down.
Ms Park has also acquired the remaining shares that were held by Lord Mandelson.
Lord Mandelson co-founded the London-based firm with Mr Wegg-Prosser in 2010 after Labour lost the general election. He stepped down from its board about two years ago.
Mr Wegg-Prosser was previously a political adviser and director of strategic communications under former prime minister Tony Blair, before going on to work as a director at a Russian media firm.
Global Counsel has worked with a roster of clients including Palantir, GSK, Vodafone, OpenAI, TikTok and the English Premier League.
It is understood that Barclays has cut ties with Global Counsel amid the scrutiny.
Global Counsel said earlier this week that Epstein had “never played any role in the establishment or ongoing business of Global Counsel, in any form whatsoever”.
This article was amended on March 24, 2026 to confirm Mr Wegg-Prosser and Jeffrey Epstein did not correspond with each other about Global Counsel in January 2011 and that the direct exchange was instead between Peter Mandelson and Jeffrey Epstein.