York MP and councillors demand ties to city be cut

THE MP for York has called on Prince Andrew to relinquish his dukedom and avoid “tarnishing” the city’s reputation.

Rachael Maskell, who has represented York Central for Labour since 2015, said it was “untenable for the Duke of York to cling on to his title another day longer”. She added: “This association with York must end. There’s a very serious allegation made against this man of privilege and entitlement.”

The backbencher accompanied her tweet with the hashtag Notinyorks-Name and her statement was echoed by councillors across the city.

Pete Kilbane, the Labour group leader, said: “Decent people would want to put as much distance between the city and the Duke as possible.”

Darryl Smalley, a senior Liberal Democrats councillor, said “every lever possible” needed to be used to cut ties with the Duke.

He told Mail Online: “I think many, many people in the city really are quite aggrieved that whilst many of his titles have been removed – those that are associated to the military and other organisations – the one that actually ties a whole city with a population of 200,000 is retained.”

However, a former Tory councillor urged the public to follow the Queen’s example in adopting a tone of “noble silence” on the scandal.

David Carr said: “The Queen is now a very old lady who has endured, with grace and noble silence, a year of enormous family upset and tragedy.”

“I believe it is Her Majesty’s decision, and hers alone, to consider the future of the title of Duke of York, and until she does, we should follow her example of noble silence.”

Under current legislation it would take an Act of Parliament to remove the title from Prince Andrew, who became Duke of York on his marriage in 1986.

Suggestions that he could be asked to put his dukedom in abeyance are considered wide of the mark.