The Duke of Cambridge said he would retire from the League Order ceremony, held today, if the Duke of York made a public return. Her speech suggests that the queen’s second child is unlikely to return to public life.
A source quoted in the Evening Standard stressed that “the Duke of Cambridge was adamant.”
They added: “If York insisted on participating publicly, he would retire.”
The event saw Sir Tony Blair, Duchess of Cornwall and Baroness Amos awarded the Royal Highest Order of Cavalry in Britain.
It is understood that the Duke of York was only allowed to attend the non-public aspects of the ceremony.
These include a private lunch.
A spokesman for Buckingham Palace said: “The Duke of York will attend the investiture and lunch today, but will not be part of the procession or service.”
In response to the Duke of Cambridge’s threat report, the editor of the Daily Mail Diary, Richard Eden, wrote in a Twitter post: “Good for William!”
Prince Andrew was seen arriving at Windsor Castle before today’s event.
READ MORE: Sunak to release more tax misery to the most affected companies
They added that William and Charles hoped that “common sense” would prevail and that Prince Andrew would not try to play a prominent role in the event.
This was his first public appearance since the conclusion of the U.S. civil case filed against him by prosecutor Virginia Giuffre.
The Duke of York has constantly denied all claims made against him by Mrs. Giuffre.
But commentators suggest a return to public life is still very unlikely.
Nick Goldstone, head of dispute resolution at the law firm, once told Express.co.uk in February that the prince would likely try to “rehabilitate” himself.
Despite this, the legal expert predicted that it would remain “off stage”.