Andrew should be 'removed' from line of succession and testify over Epstein in US, MP urges
MP Rachael Maskell said she wants to 'deal with these outstanding issues' so 'the victims and their families will be able to really move on.'
Rachael Maskell, MP for York Central, has told LBC that she wants Andrew Mountbatten Windsor removed from the line of succession and supports calls for him to give evidence in the US over the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.
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Talking to LBC's David Harper, Ms Maskell said that there is more to be done for the "sake of the survivors and the victims" of the abuse.
Andrew has already been stripped of his "prince" title and will leave his Windsor mansion, Royal Lodge. The King has "initiated a formal process" to remove his titles and Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor.
The MP told LBC that removing the former prince from the line of succession would be an important next step and show that people with "power and privilege" could be held to account.
"If we talk about what the line of succession is, this is the person who could be the most powerful individual in our land, should that unlikely eventuality occur," she said.
"So I think that would be right to tidy up the remaining areas that haven't yet been dealt with."
She continued: "We're getting to the end of the chapter, we're not quite at the end of the book. I think we just need to get there for the sake of the survivors and the victims."
Maskell also supports calls from members of the House Oversight Committee in the US for the former prince to reveal what he knows about the convicted sex trafficker Epstein and his crimes.
An inquiry by the oversight committee into how the government handled his prosecutions was approved amid public outcry over Donald Trump’s handling of the Epstein case.
There was a surge of interest in the case in July, after the justice department announced that the infamous and rumoured list of Epstein’s sex-trafficking clients did not exist, and it would share nothing further on the case.
Democrat Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi said that he wants Andrew to give evidence before Congress: "I would go so far as to subpoena him.”
He added: “Now, enforcing the subpoenas is not easy for somebody who’s on foreign soil.
"However, if Andrew wishes to come to the United States or he’s here, then he’s subject to the jurisdiction of the US Congress, and I would expect him to testify.'
Maskell, when asked if she backed such statements from US politicians, said: "I would say is if he has got evidence to bring, then absolutely.
We know that under Jeffrey Epstein, very young women were exploited, and we know that they were abused. And of course, if anyone can shine any light into that darkness, then it's absolutely right that that occurs."
Andrew's ties to Epstein were at the centre of Thursday's decision, with the Palace announcement stating: "These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him."
"Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse."
A posthumous memoir by Virginia Giuffre was also released - repeating allegations that, as a teenager, she was forced to have sex with Andrew on three separate occasions, claims he has always denied.