Prince Andrew latest: MPs ‘pushing hard’ to open inquiry into Royal Lodge rent deal

A Downing Street spokesperson refused to be drawn on questions over whether Sir Keir Starmer would leave the door open for an inquiry into Prince Andrew’s peppercorn rent at the Royal Lodge on Wednesday.

It comes after the PM was pressed by Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey at PMQs over whether he would support the establishment of a select committee.

Sir Ed said: “Will the Prime Minister support a select committee inquiry, so all those involved can be called for evidence, including the current occupant?”

The Prime Minister said: “It’s important in relation to all Crown properties that there is proper scrutiny, and I certainly support that.”

Asked if that meant Sir Keir was leaving the door open for an inquiry, a No 10 spokesman said: “I’m not going to speculate on anything beyond what the Prime Minister has said, which is that it’s important that proper scrutiny is in place.

“I’m not going to get ahead of potential parliamentary procedures.”

A new law that would give the King the power to strip Andrew of his dukedom has been proposed in the House of Commons.

York Central MP Rachael Maskell has set out legislation which would grant Charles the power to remove titles.

The proposed new law 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.

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Prince Andrew’s residence at the 30-room Royal Lodge in Windsor has come under intense scrutiny over the last few days.

But the sprawling mansion set within 98-acre grounds has been used by the royal family for lodgings since the 1800s.

Prior to Andrew’s family taking up residence in the Royal Lodge, it was occupied by King George VI and the Queen Mother when they were still the Duke and Duchess of York.

Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret spent much time at the Royal Lodge, which was used by the family as a country retreat.

In the mid-18th century, military topographer and artist Thomas Sandby lived in the house as the deputy ranger of the Great Park, granting the property the name of Deputy Ranger’s House.

Later, it was home to Joseph Frost, the park bailiff, who then became the general superintendent of farms after Sandby’s death.

George, Prince of Wales, who went on to become King George IV, used the lodge as temporary accommodation in 1812.

It was almost completely demolished, except for the conservatory, in 1830 under King William IV’s orders and rebuilt. By 1840, it was being used as accommodation for various officers of the royal household.

Following new allegations in Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir, the disgraced royal has been advised to ‘take himself off to live in private’ – Sean O’Grady suggests that a remote castle outside John O’Groats, once his grandmother’s summer home, might be a suitable punishment.

MPs within the public accounts select committee are reported to be “pushing hard” to launch an inquiry into Prince Andrew’s Royal Lodge rental affairs.

The Guardian is reporting that MPs are gathering support for the inquiry. The entire committee will need to agree to the inquiry for it to go ahead.

The select committee is chaired by Conservative MP Geoffrey Clifton-Brown.

The outlet reported that Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey wrote to Mr Clifton-Brown to launch the inquiry, saying: “Proper transparency is urgently needed, and parliament has an important role to play in scrutinising the crown estate and ensuring that taxpayers’ interests are upheld.”

As pressure mounts on Prince Andrew over his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, MPs and campaigners have called on him to leave his resident at the Royal Lodge in Windsor.

It emerged on Tuesday that Andrew had only paid a “peppercorn rent” for the property for two decades.

The 30-room Lodge was the Windsor residence of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother from 1952 until her death in 2002.

Sir Keir Starmer has indicated he would support a bid for Prince Andrew to be grilled by MPs over his rent at the Royal Lodge.

Responding to Sir Ed Davey’s query at PMQs, the prime minister said: “It’s important in relation to all crown properties that there is proper scrutiny, I certainly support that.”

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