On Wednesday, the Sun newspaper ran the headline: “His Final Disgrace”, the Daily Mail called it the “Duke’s Final ‘£10 million’ humiliation” and The Daily Star declared him a “Royal unjust”.
Neither Andrew nor Giuffre wanted to comment beyond the settlement statement filed in court, but royal commentators conclude the prince should stop dripping lecherous revelations into the queen’s platinum anniversary year, which is meant to celebrate – not berate — the monarchy.
The other reason for the relentless headlines lies in the fact that Buckingham Palace does not extinguish the firestorm either, but forwards questions to the Duke and his legal team. The Queen had already shown how far she was willing to go to distance her son’s institution by stripping him of his remaining military titles and roles last month.
Now that the case is over, lingering questions turn to how Andrew is financing the deal, which is over £10 million ($13.6 million) according to UK media. More specifically, the points of contention are over whether the queen helped pay the bill, and if so, was public money involved?
A flood of politicians, academics and commentators are demanding transparency about the financial sources behind the settlement.
Some have speculated that the Queen and Prince Charles could have contributed using their personal income from their private estates and investments. The handling of those finances doesn’t have to be publicly disclosed, though they choose to declare some of it.
Andrew may have his own money or may have gone to the private sector to secure the money. At the moment it’s just not clear and in the vacuum a story of possible wrongdoing is emerging. Until it is clear where the money is coming from, the finances of the entire family are scrutinized.
Labor MP Andy McDonald told the BBC he would raise the issue in the House of Commons, saying: “We don’t know the exact figure but there is a risk that this will come at the expense of the public so we need to get that resolved.” We need to know exactly where this money is coming from.”
Royal finances are notoriously confusing as both public and private money are involved, but the palace is committed to clarifying how taxpayers’ money is being used. Now it’s under pressure to do this sooner rather than later, as questions about how Andrew covered his substantial legal costs are only going to get louder.
WHAT MORE HAPPENS?
The smiling queen goes on with the work while the sons’ misery continues.
Elizabeth II put on a brave face as the scandals continue to haunt her children this week. She completed her first personal engagement since returning to Windsor on Wednesday. The occasion was also her first appearance since her family was caught up in a Covid scare.
In a floral-patterned dress, the monarch held an audience with the outgoing Secretary of Defense, Vice Admiral James Macleod, and his successor, Major General Eldon Millar.
The Queen’s health has been closely monitored since late last year, when she withdrew from public events on the advice of doctors to rest after an overnight stay in hospital for an unknown reason. New concerns have been renewed in recent days as several family members put themselves in isolation after testing positive for the virus. However, Wednesday’s event is said to indicate that the Queen has not contracted the virus despite seeing her son Charles “recently”.
The Queen, who this month marked the 70th anniversary of her accession to the throne, appeared in high spirits during the engagement. As she stood in the Oak Room of Windsor Castle, she yelled “ha, I’m here!” with a chuckle as the two secretaries entered the room. When asked how she was doing, the Queen joked, “Well, as you can see, I can’t move,” while gesturing to her leg, walking stick in hand. A royal source told DailyExpertNews that the Queen felt a little stiff rather than injured or unwell.
The secretaries joked about the palace’s tight security presence, revealing that they’d struggled to get past her dog Candy outside.
“I noticed Candy is on guard because when we came down the hall, she wouldn’t let us near you,” Macleod said. “She growled a little when we came in,” Millar added.
The Queen responded with surprise: “Oh really? Does she have that? She doesn’t normally growl.”
The personal audience was the only face-to-face meeting the Queen had in a busy week of royal duties. On Thursday, she hosted virtual ambassadors from Finland and Jordan, after holding a Privy Council meeting and her weekly phone call with the Prime Minister earlier in the week, among other virtual meetings.
A royal source had told us last week that the Queen would resume her normal royal duties upon her return to Windsor, with her diary expected to continue to exist as a mix of both virtual and in-person events.
DID YOU KNOW?
ROYAL TEA BREAK
Harry enjoys the star-studded Super Bowl.
IN THE ROYAL DIARY
Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, will visit Copenhagen next Tuesday for a two-day working visit with her organisation, The Royal Foundation Center for Early Childhood. It is Kate’s first time traveling abroad for work related to her foundation. During the visit, she is expected to “spend time learning about how Denmark has created a stimulating culture for early childhood development, particularly how it has promoted babies’ mental well-being in addition to physical health, and how to use harnesses the power of nature, relationships and playful learning in the first five years of life,” said Kensington Palace. She will also meet with the Danish royal family, with Queen Margrethe II who will officially welcome the Duchess on the second day of the trip. Like the British Queen, the Danish monarch is also celebrating an anniversary this year: her 50th birthday on the throne.