Prince Andrew to give up Duke of York title and honors over Jeffrey Epstein developments

Britain's Prince Andrew will stop using his Duke of York title after facing fresh questions over his friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Andrew, King Charles's younger brother, said in a statement issued via Buckingham Palace that he would "no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me."

The decision was taken "in discussion with The King, and my immediate and wider family," he said, after concluding that "the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family.

"As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me," Andrew said.

Andrew stepped back from public duties in 2019 and returned his military affiliations and later royal patronages in January 2022, after his lawyers failed to persuade a U.S. judge to dismiss a lawsuit accusing him of sexual abuse.

He later paid a substantial sum to the late Epstein abuse survivor Virginia Giuffre, who alleged that Andrew sexually abused her when she was 17. Andrew has repeatedly denied the allegation.