Britain's Prince Andrew is to stop using his remaining titles and honours, including the Duke of York, due to his links to the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, he has announced.
The latest development in the long-running controversy comes days before the publication of a memoir by Prince Andrew’s late alleged victim, Virginia Giuffre, to whom he paid millions to settle a civil sexual assault case.
In a statement released by Buckingham Palace, Prince Andrew said that in discussion with King Charles III and his immediate and wider family, they decided “the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the royal family”.
He will remain a prince, a title he obtained by birthright.
Prince Andrew said he continued to "vigorously deny the accusations against me".
“I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life," he said.
“With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me.”
King Charles’s brother will retain the dukedom, which can only be removed by an Act of Parliament, but not use it.
He will also give up his status as a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order and membership of the Order of the Garter.
Last year, councillors in York in the north of England voted to strip Prince Andrew of his freedom of the city and called to have his dukedom removed.
