Members of Parliament (MPs) are currently campaigning to remove Prince Andrew of his Duke of York title. This move follows as controversies continue to swirl around the allegations that brought him down. Virginia Giuffre, a survivor of Epstein’s abuse, has led the way with her recent revelations. She once again stood by her accusations of sexual trysts with the royal.
Prince Andrew’s home, the Royal Lodge in Windsor, pictured below, has been at the center of the negotiations. He bought the long lease for £1 million and has poured at least £7.5 million on refurbishments over the past few years. Ever since 2003, he’s only had to pay a yearly rent of “one peppercorn (if demanded). He has a legal right to live in Royal Lodge until 2078. If he decides to abandon the lease, the Crown Estate will have to pay him something in the region of £558,000.
MPs submitted the motion in the footsteps of Rachael Maskell’s 2022 motion. Yet that proposal was still an attempt to give the king or a special parliamentary committee the ability to officially remove Prince Andrew’s titles. The Scottish National Party (SNP) has tabled an early-day motion (EDM) to force a vote on taking this step.
“Every time this comes up, it clearly must be really traumatizing for the victims and survivors, so it’s really important that this matter is dealt with once and for all,” said Maskell, emphasizing the need for accountability.
Giuffre was recently in the news for her credible and accusatory claims that she was sex-trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein and had sex with Prince Andrew. Consequently, calls for the suspension of his title have grown. The accusations in her posthumous memoir have renewed public scrutiny and sparked contentious debate over the prince’s role and duty.
Here’s what Peter Kyle, another MP and the Shadow Education Secretary, had to say. He added it is a matter for the palace whether Prince Andrew should continue to live at Royal Lodge in light of these fresh accusations.
“The only real question is what Keir Starmer’s government is waiting for. The public knows this is the right thing to do, and even more importantly the victims at the heart of the Epstein scandal know that it’s the right thing to do. It needs to be done without any further excuses and any further delay,” – Rachael Maskell
Prince Andrew has already expressed reluctance to continue using his Duke of York title. This follows a week in which the calls for accountability have only intensified. Observers anticipate that if he were to voluntarily relinquish his titles, it would be viewed as a significant victory for those advocating for justice.
“Would view it as a victory that he was forced, by whatever means, to voluntarily give them [the titles] up,” – Amy Wallace.
Wallace further reflected on the broader implications of Giuffre’s claims: “Virginia wanted all the men who she had been trafficked to, against her will, to be held to account, and this is just one of the men.”
As MPs press to gather support for their motion and public pressure builds, Prince Andrew’s fate hangs in the balance. This bold parliamentary initiative might create a useful precedent for future royal titles. It will further educate on the new accountability measures borne out of recent serious allegations.