Australia first Commonwealth country to back removing Mountbatten-Windsor from line of succession

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has written to his British counterpart, Sir Keir Starmer, to confirm Australia would support the removal of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of succession.

Mr Mountbatten-Windsor stopped working as a member of the royal family in 2019 and was stripped of his titles by King Charles III last year over his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, but he remains eighth in line to the throne.

Mr Albanese said he wanted to make Australia's position clear.

"I think Australians want to know that the Australian government … regards Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor as being not appropriate to be in the line of succession, to be our head of state," he said.

"I think that Australians are disgusted by all of the revelations about the Epstein files and the connections between Epstein and various public figures."

Last week, a UK official said the British government was considering passing a law to divest Mr Mountbatten-Windsor of his succession rights after he was arrested by police and released under investigation without charge.

The complex legal framework around the line of succession means any changes require all countries where King Charles is head of state — including Australia and Canada — to pass new laws.

"In light of recent events concerning Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, I am writing to confirm that my Government would agree to any proposal to remove him from the line of royal succession," Mr Albanese wrote.

"These are grave allegations and Australians take them seriously."

At least nine police forces in the United Kingdom are reviewing or have launched investigations into accusations made against Mr Mountbatten-Windsor.

The royal's arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office came amid allegations he shared sensitive government information with Epstein during his time as trade envoy.

Mr Albanese is the first leader of a Commonwealth country to confirm support for legislation to strip Mr Mountbatten-Windsor of his succession rights.

New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has since confirmed he will also publicly endorse the push.

New Zealand also supports move

King Charles III is the sovereign of 15 Commonwealth realms, including Australia and New Zealand.

After Mr Albanese's letter was made public, Mr Luxon said he had been in direct talks with the UK about supporting moves to remove Mr Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of succession.

"We've already been in conversation with the UK Cabinet Office and they know that we are supportive," Mr Luxon said.

"Should they remove him from the line of succession, we would be very supportive of that decision.

"We can announce it any way but our position is clear: it's the same position as the Australian position but rather than a formal letter, we've been having conversations directly with the UK government." 

Mr Albanese's letter came after some Australian MPs last year called for Mr Mountbatten-Windsor to be removed as eighth-in-line to the throne after the release of Virginia Roberts Giuffre's memoir.

Ms Roberts Giuffre, who died by suicide in Western Australia, was instrumental in bringing global attention to the former prince's association with Epstein after alleging she was trafficked to the royal when she was 17 years old and sexually assaulted.

Mr Mountbatten-Windsor reached an out-of-court settlement with Ms Roberts Giuffre in 2022 for an undisclosed sum that legal experts estimated could be as high as $US10 million ($14 million).

"Given Virginia Giuffre's personal connections to Australia, Anthony Albanese should be encouraging his mate Keir Starmer to start the natural next step — removing Andrew from the line of succession," West Australian teal MP Kate Chaney told The Sydney Morning Herald in November.

"No Australian wants any possibility of Andrew being our head of state."

'I don't think anyone's going to say no'

Despite Mr Albanese's backing, it is unclear whether the UK will move forward with plans to remove Mr Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of succession.

Former BBC royal correspondent Jenny Bond told Radio National Breakfast that "it's not that difficult" to do.

"It would need the acquiescence of the other 14 realms, obviously … but I don't think anyone's going to say no," she said.

"However remote that possibility is — and clearly being eighth in line is very remote indeed. But it would also have the advantage of removing him as counsellor of state."

Counsellors of state are appointed to act in the monarch's place in the event that the king cannot undertake his official duties on a temporary basis, be it due to illness or an absence abroad.

For centuries counsellors of state included the sovereign's spouse and the next four people in the line of succession over the age of 21.

But in 2022 the Regency Acts 1937-1953 were amended to expand the pool of people who could fill in for the king, enabling the inclusion of the princess royal and the Duke of Edinburgh.

The move was seen by royal watchers as a workaround to prevent Mr Mountbatten-Windsor or Prince Harry from potentially stepping in.

"Now there are a few counsellors of state … and there is a sort of pecking order of that, and he [Mr Mountbatten-Windsor] is amongst those counsellors of state," Bond said.

"Equally ridiculous, obviously. The whole thing's nonsensical.

"So I think this will happen, but not until the investigation is concluded."

The most recent YouGov royal family favourability survey from early January showed just 3 per cent of Britons said they had a positive view of Mr Mountbatten-Windsor.

It was the lowest figure recorded to date.