Government accused of cover-up after Andrew documents hidden from public

The government has been accused of a cover-up after details of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s taxpayer-funded travel were hidden from the public.

The National Archive was due to release the minutes of a 2004 Royal Visits Committee meeting as part of the annual publication of government papers under the 20-year rule.

The meeting revealed discussions of allocating an extra £90,000 for Andrew’s foreign trips.

However, the file was marked as ‘closed’ by the Cabinet Office at the very last moment under a legal exemption for information about the Royal Family.

The record was among 10 similar documents censored from public view in the file, including four in the last week.

Graham Smith, of campaign group Republic, said: ‘There should be no royal exemption at all. But this exemption surely doesn’t apply to Andrew now he’s no longer a royal.

‘The most likely reason for this attempt to stop disclosure is pressure from the palace. The royals have sought to keep everything under wraps when it comes to Andrew, not to protect him but to protect themselves.

‘The royals are one of the most secretive institutions in the UK. These documents should be released without fear or favour, to allow the public to make informed judgments about the royals.’

The King officially stripped his disgraced brother of both his HRH style and his prince title in October over his links to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.

The former Duke of York previously worked for the UK government as a trade envoy promoting British businesses abroad.

He earned the nickname ‘Air Miles Andy’ due to his extensive travel to foreign countries.

The document due to be released today, which was made available briefly to journalists before being withdrawn, listed Andrew’s forthcoming destinations as China, Russia, Brunei, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, France and Spain.

The missing minutes, written by Sir Stephen Brown, appeared to suggest that Andrew needed an additional £90,000 from the Royal Travel Office to fund these trips.

The committee also discussed whether the then-prince should visit the EURO 2004 football tournament in Portugal.

The meeting also turned down a bid for Prince William to visit China, on the basis he should not undertake official duties until he was at least 25.

The Cabinet Office, which is responsible for transferring the files to the National Archives, blamed an ‘administrative error’ for withdrawing the documents as they had never been intended for release.

A spokesman said: ‘All records are managed in line with the requirements of the Public Records Act. Any release is subject to an extensive review process, including engaging expert stakeholders.’

The decision to withhold the documents by the Cabinet Office follows renewed scrutiny over Andrew’s relationship with Epstein.

He has featured in a number of the files relating to the financier, which have been released by the US Department of Justice in the last two weeks.

One email, from ‘Balmoral’ and signed ‘A xxx’, asked sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell if she had ‘found me some new inappropriate friends’ to have ‘fun’ with.

Sky News says they have come to the conclusion that they believe ‘A’ to be Andrew.

The context of the exchange is unclear and there is no suggestion of any wrongdoing.

In another file, the FBI revealed they received a tip-off about hidden ‘evidence’ of ‘pedophilia organized by Jeffrey Epstein for Prince Andrew’.

The tipster claimed there were ‘tapes in a secret compartment’ in the financier’s home in the Bahamas.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has always strongly denied any wrongdoing in relation to his relationship with Epstein.

What have the newly-released National Archive documents revealed?

Papers released to the National Archives at Kew, west London, have given new insight into government life over 20 years ago.

The files show Downing Street had to issue a grovelling apology to the Queen Mother after a birthday greeting in 2004 was addressed in an ‘improper manner’.

Major’s private secretary apologized for the error but said British Telecoms (BT) made the mistake when transmitting the message.

The Queen Mother still telegrammed the then-PM and his wife, saying she was ‘very touched’ by their ‘kind message’.

Not all the documents released by the National Archives were related to the Royal Family.

A series of emails and memos from July 2004 discussed the possibility of removing Zimbabwe’s leader Robert Mugabe from power, but these suggestions were ultimately dismissed.

One document described the 80-year-old Mugabe as ‘depressingly healthy’.

Policy advisor Laurie Lee wrote that recent experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq demonstrated that ‘changing a government and/or its bad policies is almost impossible from the outside’.

The National Archive files also revealed a political warning from Number 10 spin doctor Peter Mandelson to Tony Blair in the run-up to the 2005 general election.

Mandelson told the then Prime Minister that ‘next door’  – referring to Brown’s Downing Street residence – would ‘want a good majority, but not want you to do well’.

In a message sent in October 2004, Mandelson said Brown’s ‘people’ should be included in planning the election campaign ‘without giving them a veto or scope for insider demolition’.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@usnewsrank.com.

For more stories like this, check our news page.