Sources say consultation will begin on removing Andrew from line of succession
The shock arrest of Andrew Mountbatten Windsor on his 66th birthday this week has been compounded by more setbacks for the disgraced former prince.
Government insiders suggest that following the conclusion of any police inquiry into the King’s brother, discussions will begin regarding his removal from the line of succession. For several months, Andrew’s connections to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein have been scrutinised, with the recent release of three million documents by the US Department of Justice casting fresh light on their association, reports the Mirror.
Certain emails exchanged from an account apparently belonging to Andrew with the paedophile financier suggested he may have disclosed confidential information from his time as UK Trade Envoy to Epstein. One particular email was sent on Christmas Eve 2010, with the account forwarding Epstein material concerning confidential investment prospects related to the reconstruction of Helmand Province, Afghanistan.
Andrew was detained on suspicion of misconduct in a public office, with searches conducted at a Norfolk property and his previous residence in Berkshire, Royal Lodge.
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He has been released pending further investigation, and once this is completed, the Government will begin proceedings to formally remove him from the line of succession. This will necessitate an act of Parliament, alongside agreement from all 14 realms where King Charles serves as head of state.
The Times has published a detailed examination of Andrew’s “very long fall from grace” which the public has witnessed intensify in recent months, culminating in the monarch’s decision to strip his younger brother of royal titles and styles. The piece offers fresh revelations about the King’s brother during his younger years, as well as his dynamic with the late Queen.
Often labelled the late Queen’s “favourite son”, one striking claim in the report concerns a remarkable response from the former monarch. The publication alleges that “as a young man his behaviour was so atrocious that a footman punched him in the face.”
Despite her widely documented affection for Andrew, “Queen Elizabeth refused his subsequent offer to resign on the grounds that her son had obviously deserved it.”
The report goes on to suggest that Andrew managed to test his mother’s patience, despite the fact she “indulged” him. “He spent his childhood annoying almost everyone. Even she was irritated by his habit of climbing onto the roof of Buckingham Palace to tinker with the TV aerial so she couldn’t watch the racing,” the publication alleges.
The allegation that a footman once gave Andrew a black eye was originally made by royal expert Ingrid Seward in her book ‘My Husband and I’. Seward wrote that on one “occasion when [Andrew’s] taunting so annoyed a young footman that he took a swipe at Andrew that deposited him on the floor and left him with a black eye,” the member of royal staff was left “fearing for his job.”
The footman approached the Queen directly, according to Seward, and offered his resignation, but she reportedly responded that “her son had obviously deserved it and the footman was on no account to be punished for Andrew’s bad behaviour”.
Yet one insider has cast doubt on whether Andrew truly was the late Queen’s “favourite”. Ailsa Anderson, who served as the late Queen’s Press Secretary from 2001 to 2013, told the BBC: “The media do say that he was the favourite son, but in my 12 years working for the late Queen I never saw her display any favouritism amongst any of her children, so I can’t really say that’s true.”
Following Andrew’s arrest early on Thursday from his temporary residence at Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate, he was transported to Aylsham police station. A newly published report has disclosed that the majority of staff at Aylsham Police Investigation Centre were instructed to stay away that morning, whilst officers dealt exclusively with processing the former duke.
Reports suggest that staff were informed a “notable person” would be arriving just days before his arrest. Allegations have also emerged that an IT shutdown was implemented as part of the police operation, aimed at preventing news of the arrest from leaking out in advance.