UK’s former Prince Andrew accused of billing taxpayers for massages, travels

By Mehmet Solmaz

BIRMINGHAM, England (AA) — Britain’s former Prince Andrew billed taxpayers for massages and other disputed travel expenses while serving as the United Kingdom’s trade envoy, according to media reports citing former civil servants.

The BBC reported that former officials were surprised by the claims and said a culture of deference within the British government allowed them to be approved.

“I thought it was wrong … I’d said we mustn’t pay it, but we ended up paying it anyway,” one former civil servant told the broadcaster, referring to an expense submitted after an overseas trip to the Middle East.

The retired official, who worked in the UK’s Trade Department in the early 2000s, said he objected to a request to reimburse “massage services” but was overruled by more senior colleagues. He said he later regretted that the claim was paid, calling it a missed opportunity to question broader conduct.

A second former official who oversaw finances in the department told the BBC he had “absolutely no doubt” about the authenticity of the allegations and recalled similar claims tied to overseas visits.

The broadcaster also reported concerns over costly flights, multiple hotel rooms and expenses related to members of the former prince’s entourage. One source described the spending as excessive, saying it appeared as though public funds were treated casually.

UK politicians raised an outcry about his arrest last week on suspicion of misconduct in public office following recent revelations in a US release of documents related to Epstein, who died in a jail cell in 2019.

The former prince served as the UK’s trade envoy from 2001 to 2011.