Overview
- Journalists were given an embargoed No 10 file that included minutes on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, which were then removed before public release after officials said they were included by mistake.
- The minutes covered his travel as a UK trade envoy and a proposed shift of funding to the Royal Travel Office that would require about £90,000, with trips discussed to China, Russia, south‑east Asia and Spain.
- The Cabinet Office says the papers were never intended for release and are now redacted or closed at the National Archives under Public Records Act and FOI provisions that exempt royal material.
- Republic and several commentators accused the government and palace of secrecy, and Labour MP Rachael Maskell called for clarity on why the documents were withheld.
- The timing of the withdrawal overlapped with new US Justice Department releases related to Jeffrey Epstein, increasing scrutiny of Andrew, though reporters who viewed the minutes said they were unremarkable.