Thought Andrew had nothing left to lose? He's now being stripped of the honour Queen Elizabeth 'approved' for his 55th birthday

Aside from his place in the line of succession, which currently remains unchanged, there’s one last honour that Andrew Mountbatten Windsor has held onto up to now. Although his military affiliations and royal patronages were handed back to Queen Elizabeth in 2022, he remained an honorary Vice Admiral - but no longer.

The UK’s Defence Secretary, John Healey, has confirmed that ministers are currently working to remove this rank and are being "guided" by King Charles in doing so.

"In general, the government has been guided by the decisions and judgments the King has made. In defence, it’s exactly the same," he told BBC One’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. "We’ve seen Andrew surrender the honorary positions he’s had throughout the military, and guided again by the King, we are working now to remove that last remaining title of Vice-Admiral that he has."

It’s a title that Andrew received in 2015 on his 55th birthday and his mother Queen Elizabeth "approved" the promotion "in line with long-standing convention covering military promotions" for members of the Royal Family. At the time he was once again embroiled in headlines regarding his links with Jeffrey Epstein and accusations against him - allegations which he has always vehemently denied.

At the time of writing the former Prince currently still holds medals he was awarded for his military service. When asked if it was possible he could lose these too, the Defence Secretary said there was no update on that, but reiterated that "just as with his Vice-Admiral rank and title, we would be guided by the decisions the King makes".

To me, this sounds like it’s definitely not off the table for the King’s disgraced younger brother.

He served in the Royal Navy for over twenty years and although he was not entitled to wear military uniform after relinquishing his honours and titles, an exception was made as a mark of respect for Queen Elizabeth’s vigil (although not her funeral itself).

Andrew returned his military affiliations and royal patronages to his mother in January 2022 amid his civil case with the late Virginia Giuffre. Buckingham Palace released a short statement, declaring that he’d done so "with The Queen’s approval and agreement" and that he would "continue not to undertake any public duties".

He’d previously stepped back as a working royal in 2019 following his infamous Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis. Since then he’s kept a relatively low profile, though he’s continued to appear at family occasions like Christmas at Sandringham House and funerals, like the Requiem Mass held for the Duchess of Kent in September.

Pictures taken at the latter of Andrew seemingly attempting to chat with a stony-faced Prince William have attracted plenty of attention in recent weeks. Reports suggested the Prince of Wales was "not satisfied" with his uncle relinquishing his Duke of York title and now things have been taken several steps further.

It’s also been said that when William is King, Andrew will be excluded from public and private royal events, including his nephew’s coronation. So whilst the recent statements have already dealt major blows to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, the future could potentially deal more.