The King stripped his younger brother of his prince and duke of York titles on Thursday night
Mounting pressure is being placed on Andrew Mountbatten Windsor to provide testimony to a prominent US Congressional committee regarding his connections to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The King removed his younger brother’s prince and duke of York titles on Thursday evening, with Buckingham Palace issuing a statement emphasising that both his and Camilla’s thoughts remained with abuse survivors.
House Oversight Committee members have subsequently demanded the former prince disclose what he understood about the convicted sex trafficker’s activities. Andrew vehemently denies any wrongdoing.
Democrat Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi informed BBC Newsnight that he sought Andrew’s testimony before Congress, declaring: “I would go so far as to subpoena him.”
He continued: “Now, enforcing the subpoenas is not easy for somebody who’s on foreign soil. However, if Andrew wishes to come to the United States or he’s here, then he’s subject to the jurisdiction of the US Congress, and I would expect him to testify.”
He sent a direct message to Andrew: “Come clean. Come before the US Congress, voluntarily testify. Don’t wait for a subpoena. Come and testify and tell us what you know.
“At the end of the day, we want to know exactly what happened, not just to give justice to the survivors, but to prevent this from ever happening again.”
Congressman Suhas Subramanyam spoke on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Saturday, stating: “I would like for him to come to our committee and tell us everything he knows about Jeffrey Epstein and the crimes that were committed, I think this would be a great way for Andrew to clear his name, it would be great way for us to continue our pursuit of justice for the victims, and frankly, Andrew’s name has come up many times from the victims, and so he clearly has knowledge of what happened, and we just want him to come forward and tell us what he knows.”
Spencer Kuvin, a lawyer representing some of Epstein’s victims, also urged Andrew to testify. Speaking to BBC News, he said: “We need to hear his story and hear what he is saying about what occurred, but also he could testify about other potential co conspirators that he saw that may have been present at the mansions here in the States that were doing inappropriate activities.
“So on both fronts, both on behalf of other victims, but potentially on behalf of himself, we would like Andrew to come here and testify.”
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He further commented on the removal of Andrew’s titles, saying: “The victims are very glad that the crown is taking this action, that the King has recognised the seriousness of this situation, and his statement the other day was appreciated by the victims.”
A spokesperson for the Met Police revealed that they were informed of allegations surrounding non-recent trafficking for sexual exploitation in 2015, which “related to events outside the UK and an allegation of trafficking to central London in March 2001”.
They further explained that after seeking legal advice, “it was clear that any investigation into human trafficking would be largely focused on activities and relationships outside the UK”, leading officers to conclude that “other jurisdictions and organisations were better placed to pursue the specific allegations”.
In November 2016, it was decided that this matter would not proceed to a full criminal investigation, according to the force. Meanwhile, the world’s attention remains firmly on Royal Lodge following the announcement that Andrew will relocate from Windsor to private accommodation in Sandringham, Norfolk.
On Saturday morning, a car with a private number plate associated with the former prince was spotted leaving the grounds of Windsor Great Park. It has been suggested that Andrew is due to receive a six-figure sum and an annual payment as part of his “relocation settlement” after being ousted from the Royal Lodge.
The Guardian newspaper reports that the ex-prince will receive a one-off payment to cover his move, followed by a regular stipend to prevent him from “overspending in his new life as a commoner”.
The paper adds that the annual payment, privately funded by the King, would be worth several times his £20,000-a-year navy pension. The revelation of the payout comes amidst allegations that the Queen’s concerns about Andrew’s impact on her work with sex abuse victims influenced the decision to strip him of his honours and titles.
According to the Daily Telegraph, Camilla was horrified by Andrew’s association with paedophile financier Epstein and felt the ongoing scandal was hindering her public duties. The Queen has long supported survivors of sexual assaults and domestic abuse, and it was recently disclosed in a new book that she herself fended off a man who groped her on a train when she was a teenager.
The Times reported that Andrew agreed to vacate Windsor after his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson made it clear she would be leaving the property. She will not be relocating to Sandringham and will need to find her own residence.
Earlier in October, it was announced that Andrew had agreed to cease using his titles but would remain a prince and keep his dukedom ahead of the publication of the memoirs of the late Virginia Giuffre, who accused the former duke of sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager.
There have been a series of damaging newspaper allegations including that Andrew attempted to get the Metropolitan Police to unearth dirt for a smear campaign against Ms Giuffre.
The force previously stated it is investigating the allegations after the Mail On Sunday newspaper reported that Andrew had given Ms Giuffre’s date of birth and social security number to his taxpayer-funded bodyguard in 2011, asking him to investigate.
The Public Accounts Committee has already confirmed it is writing to the Crown Estate, effectively Andrew’s landlord, and the Treasury for more information about the prince’s lease, which caused public outrage when it was revealed he was paying a “peppercorn” rent.
Charles’ actions are already having an impact as Andrew’s name has been removed from the official roll of the peerage, meaning his Duke of York title will no longer be used officially.
In the coming days, the King is expected to send the Royal warrant, affecting the dukedom, and letters patent to the Lord Chancellor David Lammy, which will formally remove Andrew’s entitlement to use the title prince and HRH style.
The former duke had a “cast-iron” lease for his Royal Lodge home and only after discussions with the King’s representatives did he agree to serve formal notice on Thursday to surrender the lease, which had over 50 years left to run.
