Newsletters
The U.K. Parliament is facing increasing pressure to investigate what the royal family knew about Prince Andrew’s connections to Jeffrey Epstein and to establish a formal process for stripping him of his titles.
Calls grew over the weekend for Andrew to be subject to a police investigation and for the centuries-old rules that prevent MPs from scrutinizing royals or removing their titles to be reconsidered.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed they are investigating claims that Andrew asked his bodyguard to gather information on Virginia Giuffre just hours before a controversial photo of them emerged in 2011.
U.K. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband described leaked emails suggesting Andrew provided Giuffre’s date of birth and U.S. social security number to his close protection officer as “deeply concerning.” A police spokesperson said authorities are “aware of media reporting and are actively looking into the claims.”
Last Friday, Andrew stepped back from some royal duties and relinquished certain titles, including Duke of York, though he had already stopped using the ‘His Royal Highness’ designation after ceasing to be a working royal.
The dukedom remains, which would require an act of the U.K. Parliament to remove, while his status as a prince could only be revoked through a letter patent from the king. Andrew continues to deny any wrongdoing; the FBI formally closed its Epstein-related investigation in July.
Despite this, British MPs and campaigners are pushing for further action, including a full Metropolitan Police investigation and legislation to strip him of his titles.
Labour MP Rachael Maskell said she would push for a bill allowing either the monarch or a parliamentary committee to remove Andrew’s titles. “Every time this issue arises, it must be incredibly traumatic for the victims and survivors. Mechanisms need to exist to deal with this definitively,” she said.
Labour MP Nadia Whittome added: “It should be automatic for the state to remove Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s titles, rather than allowing him to step back voluntarily and make statements blaming his accusers.” Maskell initially proposed such legislation in 2022, modeled on a 1917 law that removed titles from peers and princes who fought against Britain in World War I.
Senior Labour figures have openly criticized Andrew. One backbencher called him a “disgrace” who “brings shame on himself and those associated with him,” and said they would support a parliamentary motion to strip him of all titles. Miliband said the royal family would need to decide on further steps, noting they “didn’t want to take up parliamentary time with this.”
Labour MP Clive Lewis emphasized the broader implications: “Andrew’s sense of entitlement comes from being a prince. The bigger story here is the monarchy itself. This raises difficult questions about how power operates in this country.”
Labour peer George Foulkes has also requested a review of U.K. parliamentary rules that restrict questions about the royal family. Earlier this year, his attempts to question Andrew’s decadelong role as the U.K.’s special trade representative were blocked, though he was eventually allowed to ask about royal expenditure.
Public pressure is mounting. Over the weekend, more than 1,000 letters urged MPs to demand a full parliamentary or independent inquiry into the Epstein scandal.
Republic, a U.K.-based campaign group advocating for a republic, criticized MPs for their silence and called for an investigation into the Met Police’s handling of the case.
Meanwhile, extracts from Giuffre’s posthumous memoir described Andrew as acting entitled toward her. Emails published by the Mail on Sunday suggest he asked his officer to collect her personal information hours before the 2011 photo emerged. Giuffre’s family says she had no criminal record, and there’s no evidence the officer acted on his request. Prince Andrew, pictured in 2023, has announced he is relinquishing the use of his royal titles and honors.
Another leaked email hints that Andrew’s ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, may have taken their daughters to visit Epstein after his release from prison. Ferguson described her association with Epstein as a “terrible error of judgment” in a 2011 interview. Sources close to her maintain neither she nor her daughters recall such a visit.
1 min read
