Prince Andrew is facing humiliating grilling over his deal regarding Royal Lodge, as the Prime Minister said he’d back an inquiry into his rent deal. The 65-year-old is said to be facing pressure over the maintenance of the 30-room property, which is where he has resided with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson since 2003.
The lavish mansion, which is located within Windsor Great Park, reportedly has an annual running cost of around £250,000. However, images of the property seemingly show black mould on the exterior walls of the gatehouse and main home. When committing to the 75-year lease at Royal Lodge, Andrew committed to spending £1million unpfront and then £7.5millon on urgent renovations – although it is thought that the eventual bill was nearly £10million.
The Telegraph reported that he must repaint the exterior once every five years with at least two coats in exactly the same colour – and paint the inside of the residence every seven years.
Andrew has avoided the “nominal” annual rent on the property of £260,000, as it has emerged that the royal has only paid “peppercorn rent” for the last 22 years.
Speaking of Andrew, Sir Keir Starmer has said he would back an inquiry by MPs into why the former Duke of York has lived rent-free at Royal Lodge.
Discussing the royal’s “rotten deal”, former Labour minister Baroness Hodge told the Today Programme: “[The] Treasury is supposed to do the job properly and audit a lot of this money. It’s like treading on eggshells. They just don’t dare do it properly.”
According to the lease documents, it is estimated that Andrew will be given an eye-watering £558,000 if he decides to go ahead and move out.
Andrew recently revealed, via a statement released by Buckingham Palace, that he is relinquishing his remaining titles and honours.
The decision comes after his relations with convicted paedophile sex offender Jeffrey Epstein returned to the headlines, as well as his association with an alleged Chinese spy.