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Prince Andrew living rent free in mansion.
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MPs have moved to lodge a parliamentary motion to strip Prince Andrew of his dukedom, in a rarely permitted move in the Commons.
The government is facing mounting pressure over the prince’s residence in the 30-room Royal Lodge in Windsor, where it was revealed that he has not paid rent for more than two decades.
And people blame migrants for getting stuff for free |
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Technically Andrew is a second-generation migrant because his father Philippos Andreou of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderberg-Glücksburg, was born in Greece and didn't adopt British citizenship until the age of 26. |
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"The government is facing mounting pressure over the prince’s residence in the 30-room Royal Lodge in Windsor, where it was revealed that he has not paid rent for more than two decades."
He has paid the rent, it's just that the rent is incredibly small. |
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As a wedding present the Queen gave Andrew a house called Sunningdale. After it had been empty for two years (following his divorce) a Russian bought it for £15M (£3M more than the asking price) and demolished it. |
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"He paid £1M for the lease and £7.5M for renovations, in lieu of rent
Where did that come from.
Not affordable on 22 years RN pilots salary. "
BBC report says similar: The arrangement means he has only ever paid a token annual rent on Royal Lodge, and even that might not be required under his deal with the Crown Estate, a document seen by BBC News confirms.
The deal meant that instead of paying annual rent, Prince Andrew made large lump sum payments up-front, including for renovations.
In effect, those payments - which totalled around £8m - meant he was buying himself out of future rent obligations for the duration of the 75-year lease.
This ongoing arrangement poses a problem for the Royal Family: with Prince Andrew mired in scandal, it is a terrible look to have him living among them in Windsor in apparent splendour.
The lease document also show Prince Andrew has to keep paying for the upkeep of Royal Lodge, ensuring the exterior stonework is in good condition every five years and painting the interior every seven years.
He has to "paint, paper, polish, decorate" to keep the house in good condition and to keep the landscaped grounds and gardens in good order. Prince Andrew, as the tenant, also has to allow his landlords to inspect and make sure he is keeping to the terms of the lease.There might now be questions about where Andrew got the funds in 2003 to effectively pay more than £8 million for a lease for life. |
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"There might now be questions about where Andrew got the funds in 2003 to effectively pay more than £8 million for a lease for life."
That question has already been answered in the post immediately before yours. |
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"There might now be questions about where Andrew got the funds in 2003 to effectively pay more than £8 million for a lease for life.
That question has already been answered in the post immediately before yours."
Apologies,that sentence was not a question from me, it was still part of the BBC article |
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"As a wedding present the Queen gave Andrew a house called Sunningdale. After it had been empty for two years (following his divorce) a Russian bought it for £15M (£3M more than the asking price) and demolished it. "
Sold to a bvi trust apparently, with funds originating from where?, legal tax avoidance |
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"Lol and who gave Andrew £7 mil? Any proof it was paid by Andrew?"
Royal sovereign grant possibly like the £12M paid to his victim.
"Oh the Grand old Duke of York,
He had 12 million quid,
But gave it to a woman he'd never met,
For something he never did" 🎶🎵🎶 |
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"There might now be questions about where Andrew got the funds in 2003 to effectively pay more than £8 million for a lease for life."
"That question has already been answered in the post immediately before yours."
"Apologies,that sentence was not a question from me, it was still part of the BBC article "
Doh! I didn't realise that whole thing was a quote from the BBC. Thanks for explaining. |
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By *lan157Man 28 weeks ago
a village near Haywards Heath in East Sussex |
"Another reason to ditch this circus and have an elected head of state "
We are not very good at electing people either . They tend to be bad apples once elected |
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"What will people be happy with when it comes to Andrew? It feels as though the public are goading for the roman thumb down, to create an end to the monarchy.
I'm unsure where this ends...
"
Considering he hasn't been charged let alone convicted of anything you have to wonder. |
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"What will people be happy with when it comes to Andrew? It feels as though the public are goading for the roman thumb down, to create an end to the monarchy.
I'm unsure where this ends...
Considering he hasn't been charged let alone convicted of anything you have to wonder. "
Don’t spoil it for people, they need someone/thing to vent all their pent up anger and frustrations on. |
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"
Considering he hasn't been charged let alone convicted of anything you have to wonder. "
Didn't Liz pay £12 million to his accuser to keep quiet and make the problem go away, ensuring no criminal or civil proceeding could go ahead, even though Andrew hadn't done anything? |
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"
Considering he hasn't been charged let alone convicted of anything you have to wonder.
Didn't Liz pay £12 million to his accuser to keep quiet and make the problem go away, ensuring no criminal or civil proceeding could go ahead, even though Andrew hadn't done anything? "
It was part of a civil case.
I'm not saying he's done nothing, there's some very muddied waters. |
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By (user no longer on site) 28 weeks ago
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"He could have said he had consensual sex with her and saved paying out £12 million. "
He couldn’t have — she was 17 at the time, and the alleged encounters took place in the U.S., where the age of consent is 18 in the relevant states. That means it couldn’t legally be considered consensual, which is likely why he settled instead of trying to make that argument. |
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By (user no longer on site) 28 weeks ago
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"He had sex with her in London where it is legal"
That’s one of the locations she mentioned, yes — but the allegations also included encounters in the U.S. and the Virgin Islands, where the age of consent is higher.
And even in the UK, legality doesn’t erase the wider issue of coercion or trafficking, which were central to her claims.
That’s why the case wasn’t just about age — it was about exploitation. |
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By *ugby 123Couple 28 weeks ago
Forum Mod O o O oo |
"Do other royals like William and Kate pay rent ?
Not as far as I know. I think the crown estate owns the houses and they have lease agreements. "
I think it is less black and white going on what I have read, it sounds like the sovereign owns them and handed them over to the Gov to run and make money off in return for an annual grant ( the one that people complain about )
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"People say the Royal Family bring in tourists, boosting the economy but France has more tourists than us and they don't have a monarchy. "
I think the country would be poorer culturally without the pomp and ceremony that surrounds the monarchy in general and the royal family in particular. The changing of the guard etc is on many tourist lists and people gather everywhere royal go.
A lot of French tourist attractions are connected to their former royalty and aristocracy. Maybe we could do away with the people and keep the rituals. |
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"People say the Royal Family bring in tourists, boosting the economy but France has more tourists than us and they don't have a monarchy. "
Imagine how bad it would be then without the Royals!
France has much more cool tourist stuff than the UK, and it's much easier for people from all over Europe to get to. |
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By *ugby 123Couple 28 weeks ago
Forum Mod O o O oo |
"
A lot of French tourist attractions are connected to their former royalty and aristocracy. Maybe we could do away with the people and keep the rituals. "
Or have a raffle every week and one of us lot take their place for a week  |
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"
A lot of French tourist attractions are connected to their former royalty and aristocracy. Maybe we could do away with the people and keep the rituals.
Or have a raffle every week and one of us lot take their place for a week "
Good idea. I want a week when they're on holiday please |
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By (user no longer on site) 28 weeks ago
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It’s true — we could easily keep the tradition and pageantry without the actual monarchy.
Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, and the Tower of London would still exist, and so would ceremonies like the Changing of the Guard — just as Versailles and the Louvre still thrive in republican France.
The argument that the royals “pay for themselves” doesn’t really hold up either:
– The **Sovereign Grant** alone costs taxpayers over £86 million a year, not counting security and travel.
– The Crown Estate profits go to the Treasury whether there’s a monarch or not.
– Independent studies (including Republic’s 2024 report) show the royals cost the UK *hundreds of millions* more than they generate.
The pomp is cultural — the people are just very expensive extras. |
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By (user no longer on site) 28 weeks ago
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"^^ there would be no shouting "make way for the King's guard" to though "
True — but we could still have actors doing it! They already shout “make way for the Queen!” at every Ren Faire from Florida to Finland.
Turns out you don’t need a monarchy to enjoy the theatre of one. |
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"^^ there would be no shouting "make way for the King's guard" to though
True — but we could still have actors doing it! They already shout “make way for the Queen!” at every Ren Faire from Florida to Finland.
Turns out you don’t need a monarchy to enjoy the theatre of one."
How about "make way for the guard" ? Seems fine to me. 👑👸🤴 |
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"
Considering he hasn't been charged let alone convicted of anything you have to wonder.
Didn't Liz pay £12 million to his accuser to keep quiet and make the problem go away, ensuring no criminal or civil proceeding could go ahead, even though Andrew hadn't done anything? "
Didn't trump do something quite similar ?
Off with his head 😁😁 |
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"I don’t know about living rent free in a mansion but he certainly seems to be living rent free in a lot of peoples heads.
 I was itching to say that!"
I say the things others only think, probably why I spend time not being able to post😂  |
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By *otMe66Man 28 weeks ago
Terra Firma |
"It’s true — we could easily keep the tradition and pageantry without the actual monarchy.
Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, and the Tower of London would still exist, and so would ceremonies like the Changing of the Guard — just as Versailles and the Louvre still thrive in republican France.
The argument that the royals “pay for themselves” doesn’t really hold up either:
– The **Sovereign Grant** alone costs taxpayers over £86 million a year, not counting security and travel.
– The Crown Estate profits go to the Treasury whether there’s a monarch or not.
– Independent studies (including Republic’s 2024 report) show the royals cost the UK *hundreds of millions* more than they generate.
The pomp is cultural — the people are just very expensive extras."
There is no definitive understanding of cost to return, so how have you come to the conclusion the royal family cost hundreds of millions more than they generate?
Don't rely on those pesky anti monarchy chatbots, they will be using data from the likes of Republic  |
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"^^ there would be no shouting "make way for the King's guard" to though
True — but we could still have actors doing it! They already shout “make way for the Queen!” at every Ren Faire from Florida to Finland.
Turns out you don’t need a monarchy to enjoy the theatre of one.
How about "make way for the guard" ? Seems fine to me. 👑👸🤴"
What's wrong with plain and simple "Mind yerbax please"?
|
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"^^ there would be no shouting "make way for the King's guard" to though
True — but we could still have actors doing it! They already shout “make way for the Queen!” at every Ren Faire from Florida to Finland.
Turns out you don’t need a monarchy to enjoy the theatre of one.
How about "make way for the guard" ? Seems fine to me. 👑👸🤴
What's wrong with plain and simple "Mind yerbax please"?
"
It doesn't have quite the same impact |
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I have zero sympathy with him. He is an odious individual. But on the point of his pepper corn rent. Don’t various government ministers have grace and favour buildings they can live in rent free dotted around London. We pay their rent and for maintenance and upgrades. Shouldn’t that be looked at as well ?  |
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"I have zero sympathy with him. He is an odious individual. But on the point of his pepper corn rent. Don’t various government ministers have grace and favour buildings they can live in rent free dotted around London. We pay their rent and for maintenance and upgrades. Shouldn’t that be looked at as well ? "
Absolutely. The world is changing and more light must be shone in the dark places. Where there is the potential for corruption, be it government, business or private, greater scrutiny must be exercised. .
Those who claim indignantly and proudly that they are open, transparent and audited, should be audited more thoroughly. |
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