Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has asked the Crown Estate and the Treasury to justify the lease arrangements for Prince Andrew’s Royal Lodge, saying it wants to know whether the deal is delivering value for money. The committee set a deadline of 28 November for a formal explanation of the rationale behind the 75-year lease.
Prince Andrew took the long-term lease in 2003 and moved into Royal Lodge in 2004. Documents examined by the National Audit Office and the Crown Estate show he paid substantial sums up front—more than £8m in total—including large payments described as renovations, a £2.5m advance towards rent, a £1m premium, and other upfront charges. Those payments have been interpreted as effectively buying out future rent: the arrangement was based on a notional annual rent of about £260,000, with the day-to-day charge recorded as a token or “peppercorn” rent that may not actually be required under the lease.
In a letter to the Crown Estate and the Treasury, PAC chair Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said there was “considerable and understandable public interest” in how public money relates to Prince Andrew, pointing to the fact he is no longer a working royal and to the serious allegations made against him. The committee has asked whether any costs for work at Royal Lodge were ultimately met by the taxpayer and what steps the Crown Estate will take to secure value for money in any future arrangements with the prince.
The PAC also flagged concerns about whether lease terms, including those covering maintenance, are being enforced to preserve Royal Lodge, which is Grade II-listed and includes additional buildings such as a gardener’s cottage, a Chapel Lodge, a six-bedroom cottage and security accommodation.
A Treasury spokesperson reiterated that the Crown Estate is independent of both government and the monarch and said the Treasury would respond to Sir Geoffrey in due course. The Crown Estate has not publicly commented on the PAC’s letter.
Political figures have called for further scrutiny: Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey asked the PAC to open an inquiry and to invite Prince Andrew to give evidence. While a Commons committee may invite him, an appearance by a member of the royal family would be unprecedented, and it is unclear whether a committee could compel his attendance.
The government has so far refused calls to give MPs time to debate Prince Andrew’s titles or the issue of taxpayer-funded housing. There have been media reports that the prince may be willing to vacate Royal Lodge but has sought alternative royal properties for himself and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson; Buckingham Palace has not commented on those reports.
Separately, recent reporting revealed that Prince Andrew hosted Jeffrey Epstein at Royal Lodge in 2006 as part of a birthday celebration for his daughter Beatrice, two months after a US arrest warrant had been issued for Epstein relating to the sexual assault of a minor. Prince Andrew has consistently denied any wrongdoing and did not respond to a request for comment about that revelation.
The PAC’s request for explanation and documentation from the Crown Estate and the Treasury is due by 28 November as MPs weigh whether the terms and history of the lease remain justified given Prince Andrew’s changed role and public concerns.
