Prince Andrew accused of 'worming his way back into public life' as Duke of York to attend royal event with King Charles
20 March 2023, 22:47 | Updated: 20 March 2023, 23:43
Prince Andrew has been accused of "dressing up as a royal for a day" after taking up an invite to go to an event with King Charles.
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The prince, who stepped back from public life amid a scandal related to his relationship with disgraced paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, will go to the Royal Victorian Order party, wearing his ermine robes.
At the Windsor event, held to celebrate personal loyalty and service to the royal family, the Duke of York will have the chance to mingle with 600 guests, including his brothers the King and Prince Edward.
But critics said Andrew should not be allowed to go after his alleged indiscretions, which he has denied.
Former MP Norman Baker, a serving member of the Privy Council, told the Sun: "Prince Andrew is going to any length possible to worm his way back into public life.
"The only order he should be given is the order of the boot.
"He is simply being allowed to play dressing up as a royal for the day when really he should be serving a long period of silence.”
Ingrid Seward, of Majesty magazine, said: “He is a member, so they probably couldn’t stop him going even if they wanted to.”
Buckingham Palace did not comment.
It comes after lawyers accused Prince Andrew of engaging in "extreme and outrageous conduct" with Virginia Giuffre as part of the latest court battle involving the royal.
The Duke of York is alleged to have had sex with Ms Giuffre three times when she was 17 and became of Jeffrey Epstein.
The latest claims surfaced in a US court after the 63-year-old royal and former friend of Epstein was named in a new case brought against banking giants JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank.
The financial firms stand accused of "facilitating Jeffrey Epstein's sex crimes" by an unnamed woman - referred to as 'Jane Doe', as part of the case taking place in Manhattan, New York.
What's next for Prince Andrew?
Last year Prince Andrew settled out of court as part of a lawsuit filed by Ms Giuffre reported to have been worth $12million (£10m).
However, the royal continues to assert his innocence in relation to the accusations brought by Giuffre, insisting the payout was not an admission of guilt.
