Last month, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer suggested that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, should testify before the US Congress about his treatment of convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Now the king is feeling angry. “How long have you known about Andrew?” A heckler shouted as King Charles greeted well-wishers outside a train station in Clitheroe, Lancashire – the second time in a week the monarch has been publicly accused of his brother’s misdeeds.
The former prince is now known only as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. (AP)Thames Valley Police are assessing allegations that Epstein trafficked a woman to the Windsor estate for sex with Andrew after the release of the latest batch of Epstein files. A Buckingham Palace spokesman said on February 9 that the monarch “stands ready to support” the police investigation (Charles has already stripped his brother of his royal status and home). Earlier Prince William, next in line to the throne, let it be known that he and his wife, Catherine, were “deeply concerned by the ongoing revelations”. Both King and his successor expressed their concern for Epstein’s victims.
The Peter Mandelson affair has yet to implicate civil servants in the former Labor politician’s dealings with Epstein. The same cannot be said for some of Andrew’s associates, who are sprinkled throughout the files, facilitating meetings with Epstein and his entourage years after his conviction.
The fact that these revelations came from the US Department of Justice is itself an indictment. Once notorious for poaching the subject of their reporting, Britain’s royal correspondents have largely erred on the side of respect. Government obstruction does not help. In 2023, Andrew Loney, a historian, submitted a freedom of information request to the Foreign Office on Andrew’s time as trade envoy. He says he was told that even in an official capacity “members of the royal family are not subject to freedom of information laws”.
Polling suggests that King Andrew has just been tainted by the scandal. More details linking Palace staff to Epstein could change that. Andrew isn’t the only one sweating.
