Andrew should not be in line for throne, says MP

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor should have his succession rights revoked so that he is no longer in line to the throne, a York MP has said.

The former Duke of York gave up his royal titles following accusations about his links with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, although he has consistently denied any wrongdoing.

Rachael Maskell, Labour MP for York Central, told the BBC that "time and time again, we have seen that Andrew has been conservative with the truth", and said his position as Counsellor of State should also be removed.

"All of these titles and positions need to be addressed, so we are just left with Andrew the citizen, and a citizen that is fully accountable," she said.

Mountbatten-Windsor is currently eighth in line to the throne.

His position as one of the Counsellors of State means in the absence of the monarch, he could make delegated decisions on his behalf.

Last year, Maskell proposed a change to the law to allow the King to remove titles following a recommendation from Parliament or at the request of the title holder.

The motion was halted however, when the government declined to give MPs time to hold a debate about the former royal in the Commons.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4, the MP also said greater scrutiny and "transparency" was needed in relation to the former royal's time as a UK trade envoy.

Mountbatten-Windsor has faced calls for investigation into his tenure in the role, which he undertook between 2001 to 2011.

"We need to get to the bottom - as someone in a key position - as to what conversations took place, was there a breach of the confidence which is put in trade envoys to ensure that national information wasn't taken out of context," Maskell added.

"We need to know what was happening in those circles, therefore I think it would be right to be able to scrutinise, have transparency, and to get to the bottom of all of these dealings."

The palace, and Mountbatten-Windsor, were approached for comment.

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