Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he would back plans to remove Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of succession to the British throne in a letter he sent to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office.
Last week, a UK official said the British government was considering legislation to ensure that Mountbatten-Windsor, currently eighth in line to the throne, could never be king following his arrest as part of a police investigation into his ties to disgraced U.S. financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
King Charles, who last year stripped his brother of his title of prince and forced him out of his Windsor home, is not only the monarch and head of state in Britain, but also in Australia and 13 other countries.
Any changes to the succession to the throne have to be approved not just in Britain but also in the other realms.
In the letter seen by Reuters, Albanese told Starmer that in light of the recent events, his government would agree to any proposal to remove Charles’ younger brother from the line of succession.
“I agree with His Majesty that the law must now take its full course and there must be a full, fair and proper investigation,” his letter said.
Speaking to ABC Radio on Tuesday, Albanese said Australians did not regard Mountbatten-Windsor as an appropriate figure to remain in the line of succession to be Austraia’s head of state.
“I certainly do (want him removed) and I think Australians will as well. These are very serious allegations,” Albanese said.
The British monarch is the head of state in Australia, New Zealand and 12 other Commonwealth realms outside the United Kingdom, although the role is largely ceremonial.
In a statement on Tuesday, New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s office said his government would support any proposal to remove Mountbatten-Windsor from the order of succession.
The last time changes were made to the line of succession came in 2013, when a law was passed to end a 300-year-old system that gave precedence to male heirs.
The British government has said any change would follow the completion of a police investigation. Officers are searching Mountbatten-Windsor’s former mansion in Windsor as part of an investigation into whether he committed misconduct in a public office during his time as government trade envoy.
Other allegations relating to Epstein are also being considered by various British police forces. Mountbatten-Windsor, who has made no public comment since the mass release of documents by the U.S. government linked to Epstein last month, has always denied any wrongdoing in relation to the late financier.
(Reporting by Elizabeth Piper, Michael Holden and Sam Tabahriti）
