LONDON — The late Queen Elizabeth II was "very keen" for former Prince Andrew to be named Britain's trade envoy in 2001, according to documents released Thursday that showed his appointment received little scrutiny from government ministers.
The government released confidential papers related to the appointment in response to legislation passed by Parliament after lawmakers accused the king's brother of putting his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein ahead of the nation. The former prince was stripped of his royal titles, including Duke of York, last year and is now known simply as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
“The Queen is very keen that the Duke of York should take on a prominent role in the promotion of national interests,” the head of Britain’s trade body wrote to two senior cabinet ministers on Feb. 25, 2000.
The queen worried about her son
The involvement of the late queen confirms previously held beliefs that the monarch had a soft spot for her second son, which may have influenced her lack of decisiveness in dealing with allegations about his links to Epstein. Royal commentators have for years suggested that the queen should have moved quicker to remove her son from royal duties, and her failure to do so tarnished the monarchy.
Mountbatten-Windsor served as Britain’s special envoy for international trade from 2001 to 2011, when he was forced to give up the role because of concerns about his links to questionable figures in Libya and Azerbaijan.
If nothing else, the documents suggest Elizabeth worried about him, said Craig Prescott, an expert on constitutional law and the monarchy at Royal Holloway, University of London.
“It's like, in a sense, if the queen makes it clear that that’s her wish, that’s the end of the argument,'' Prescott said. "Her Majesty’s civil service, as it was then, would have to deal with it on that basis.”
Lawmakers approved a motion in February demanding publication of the documents after the former prince was arrested and questioned for several hours on allegations he shared government reports with Epstein while he was trade envoy.
Documents suggest Mountbatten-Windsor was appointed with little due diligence
Trade Minister Chris Bryant said in a written statement to lawmakers that “we have found no evidence that a formal due diligence or vetting process was undertaken” before Mountbatten-Windsor was appointed to the role of special trade envoy.
“There is also no evidence that this was considered. This is understandable since this new appointment was a continuation of the royal family’s involvement in trade and investment promotion work following the Duke of Kent’s decision to relinquish his duties as Vice-Chairman of the Overseas Trade Board,” he said.
He said that the government was cooperating with Thames Valley Police on their investigation into Mountbatten-Windsor and possible misconduct in public office.
Mountbatten-Windsor was stripped of his royal titles late last year as the U.S. Justice Department prepared to release millions of pages of documents related to its investigation of Epstein. Those files showed how the wealthy financier used an international web of rich, powerful friends to gain influence and sexually exploit young women and girls.
Nowhere has the fallout from the document release been felt more strongly than in the U.K., where the scandal has raised questions about the way power is wielded by the aristocracy, senior politicians and influential business owners, known collectively as “the Establishment.”
Mountbatten-Windsor has vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
Officials did suggest not offering the former prince golf trips
There were hints, however, that some had misgivings about giving Mountbatten-Windsor the high-profile trade role, where his effectiveness relied on his credibility. The back and forth suggested that while officials may not have questioned his appointment, they were involved in making suggestions about what he shouldn't be allowed to do in the role.
Kathryn Colvin, head of protocol at the Foreign Office, wrote in a January 2000 memo that Andrew’s private secretary “asked that the Duke of York should not be offered golfing functions abroad. This was a private activity and if he took his clubs with him he would not play in any public sense.”
Another document, a government memo sent to U.K. trade staff around the world, warned that Mountbatten-Windsor’s “high public profile” will require “careful and sometimes strict media management.”
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