Sir Keir Starmer has backed calls for Prince Andrew to be hauled in front of MPs to give evidence in parliament, following revelations about his living situation.
Amid mounting pressure on the disgraced royal to give up his 30-room Windsor mansion after it emerged he had paid only a peppercorn rent for more than 20 years, the prime minister called for “proper scrutiny”.
Addressing Sir Keir at Prime Minister’s Questions, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey asked: “Given the revelations about the Royal Lodge, does the prime minister agree that this House needs to properly scrutinise the crown estate to ensure taxpayers’ interests are protected?
“The chancellor herself has said that the current arrangements are wrong, so will the prime minister support a select committee inquiry so all those involved can be called for evidence – including the current occupant?”
Responding, Sir Keir said: “It’s important in relation to all crown properties that there is proper scrutiny, I certainly support that.”
Last week, Andrew announced he would give up use of his royal titles after renewed focus on his links to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, but an act of parliament would be required to formally remove the dukedom.
The prince vehemently denies the allegations that Virginia Giuffre, whose posthumous memoir Nobody’s Girl was published on Tuesday, was forced to have sex with him three times after being trafficked by the billionaire financier.
Andrew and his family have a 75-year lease of the 30-bedroom Royal Lodge in Windsor, allowing them to live in the property until 2078. The latest revelation has piled pressure on the scandal-mired royal to give up the Royal Lodge, which sits on an estate of 98 acres in Windsor Great Park and is leased from the crown estate.
Speaking after PMQs, a Downing Street spokesperson backed calls for Andrew to go to the police with any information he has relating to Epstein’s activities.
“Our position on that is, as with any criminal investigation, or any investigation led by law enforcement authorities, where people have information that is relevant, they should, of course, share that information proactively,” the spokesperson said.
Details of the leasehold agreement show that Andrew signed a 75-year lease in 2003. He paid £1m for the lease, and beyond that, rent was set at a “peppercorn” if demanded.
Profits from the crown estate are handed to the Treasury for the benefit of the nation’s finances, raising concerns that the public could be deprived of potential funds from the property due to the peppercorn rent.
The agreement also contains a clause which states the crown estate would have to pay Andrew around £558,000 if he gave up the lease.
On Tuesday, senior Tory Robert Jenrick said it was “about time Prince Andrew took himself off to live in private” as “the public are sick of him”, while campaign group Republic has demanded a “full, unrelenting investigation” into royal links to Epstein and efforts to protect the royal.
Sir Keir’s backing of a select committee inquiry into the issue came hours before MP Rachael Maskell set out legislation which would allow the King to formally strip Andrew of his dukedom.
The proposed new law, introduced to the Commons on Wednesday, would give the monarch the power to remove titles on his own initiative, following a recommendation of a joint committee of parliament, or at the request of the person who holds the title.
The bill stands little chance of becoming law without government support, and ministers have resisted calls to act, insisting such decisions are for the King.
Ms Maskell has said the legislation could have wider implications beyond Prince Andrew, including allowing rogue members of the House of Lords to be stripped of their peerages.
It comes after a new poll showed that four out of five Britons want Andrew to be formally stripped of his titles.
Some 63 per cent of nearly 6,700 adults questioned were “strongly” in favour of the formal removal of the dukedom, and 17 per cent “somewhat” supported the idea, the YouGov poll showed.
Just 6 per cent were opposed to it – 4 per cent somewhat and 2 per cent strongly – while 14 per cent did not know.
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