Battle of Royal Lodge: Only Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and not King Charles can force Prince Andrew out of royal home
26 May 2023, 12:23
King Charles has been left with one option after Prince Andrew has refused to willingly leave his mansion, royal experts say.
The Duke of York has reportedly refused to bow to the King's demands to vacate 30-bedroom Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park after it was earmarked for Prince William and Kate Middleton.
Andrew signed a long lease on the £30million property - part of the Crown Estate where he lives with ex-wife Sarah Ferguson - after moving in two decades ago following the Queen Mother's death.
According to friends of the Prince, the lease has another several decades left on it, and the powers to boot him out are not even in the hands of the King, but the Chancellor.
"The lease is in the Duke’s name so no one can take that away from him," the friend told The Times.
"It has never been suggested that it could be taken away from him."It’s a long lease with 80 to 90 years left on it. This is a lease between him and the Crown Estate."
"That’s not a matter for the King. It’s a matter for the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
"The only way you could get him to move out would be through an arrangement — he would have to agree."
The King and Prince Andrew have been at loggerheads over Royal lodge for months amid a squeeze in royal budgets.
