Prince Andrew’s popularity has plummeted since he renounced his royal titles – with half of Britons believing he should be officially stripped of them by Parliament, polling reveals.
More than 82 per cent were this week found to hold a negative view of Andrew, compared to just 74 per cent in the days before he gave up his titles.
It was the right decision for him to do so, given his links with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to 88 per cent of those polled by Ipsos.
While Andrew will no longer use his titles – which included Duke of York, Earl of Inverness and Baron Killyleagh – by law, he still holds them.Â
And 51 per cent of those surveyed said Parliament should intervene to legally remove them.
Two in five said the Royal Family has handled the situation with Andrew badly since allegations were first made against him.
Despite the controversy, this same number also believed that Britain would be in a worse position if the monarchy was abolished.
Favourability ratings for the Firm as a whole dropped by two points to 50 per cent this week.Â
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More than 82 per cent of those polled were this week found to hold a negative view of Andrew
However, some of its members, including Kate and William, were found to have actually gained popularity since the scandal, going up by two points and four points respectively to 66 and 69 per cent.
Gideon Skinner, senior director of UK politics at Ipsos, said: ‘These findings underscore a critical moment for the Royal Family in the court of public opinion.
‘Prince Andrew’s already low favourability ratings have sunk even further, and there is widespread support for him renouncing his official titles.
‘However, despite the turbulence surrounding Prince Andrew, it is slightly better news for the Palace that so far overall support for the monarchy remains relatively stable.’
On Friday night, Andrew announced he would no longer be known as the Duke of York and was stepping down from membership of the Order of the Garter – the country’s most ancient order of chivalry.
Andrew also relinquished his position as Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victoria Order but he will remain a prince, having been born the son of Queen Elizabeth.
His ex-wife, Sarah, Duchess of York, with whom he will continue to live at the lavish 30-bedroom Royal Lodge at Windsor, is now known as plain Sarah Ferguson.Â
The prince’s decision was made after strong pressure from King Charles and in discussion with other family members, including Prince William, as heir to the throne, as well as Andrew’s other siblings, Princess Anne and Prince Edward.
Calls are growing for Prince Andrew to be kicked out of the Royal Lodge (pictured in 2024), the lavish Windsor mansion he shares with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson
In a statement issued by Buckingham Palace on his behalf, Andrew made clear he continued to deny allegations of sexual assault made against him by the late Virginia Giuffre, who he met through paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.Â
But he conceded continued revelations about his dealings with Epstein, as reported by The Mail on Sunday, were a ‘distraction’ from the good work of the Royal Family.
He said his decision was prompted by his desire to ‘always… put my duty to my family and country first’ – echoing his infamous comment that he chose to break off relations with Epstein by flying to New York to tell him the news personally, because he was an ‘honourable’ man.Â
This newspaper previously revealed how Andrew told the Met Police to dig up dirt on Ms Giuffre by handing over her confidential social security number and date of birth to his taxpayer-funded police protection officer.
The Met is ‘actively looking into the claims made’.
The MoS also revealed how Epstein introduced Andrew to a second woman who had been sexually abused by the paedophile financier for years and how he bankrolled Sarah Ferguson, Andrew’s ex-wife, for 15 years.
And royal experts have told the Daily Mail how the next few days could be ‘toxic’ for Andrew and risks overshadowing King Charles’s royal engagements, including his state visit to the Vatican with Queen Camilla on Wednesday.
Andrew and Sarah Ferguson still live together in Windsor despite being divorced
Police were seen guarding the gates of Andrew and Fergie’s home this weekÂ
Richard Fitzwilliams said: ‘The problem the Royal Family has is that it cannot control events.
‘The posthumous memoir, Nobody’s Girl by poor Virginia Giuffre, who took her own life in April this year, will, according to early reports, be toxic for Andrew.’
He said ‘only 1 per cent’ of documents linked to Epstein have been made public, adding: ‘This could therefore be an almost endless stream of embarrassment and it is clear that they could be highly incriminating both to Andrew and also to Sarah Ferguson as yesterday’s MoS revealed.
‘There will almost certainly be more public disgust at what is revealed.
‘When William becomes King he is likely to pursue a tough policy and we may never see Andrew or Sarah in public again at a royal event.’