Prince Andrew’s disasterous BBC interview regarding his friendship with alleged paedophile Jeffery Epstein has shocked Britain and the backlash has played out publically around the world.
Since then, people have been sharing previous gaffes and critical comments made by Prince Andrew. A spokesperson from Buckingham Palace has hit out at claims by a former British minister that the Duke of York made racist comments about Arabs during a state dinner in London for the Saudi royal family.
Jacqui Smith, who was British Home Secretary from June 2007 to June 2009, claims Prince Andrew made “unbelievable” comments about Arabs, including references to camels, during a state dinner at the official residence of Queen Elizabeth II.
“I met him (Prince Andrew) several times, including once at a state banquet where after dinner, I and my husband and another Labour cabinet minister had a drink with him, and I have to say the conversation left us slack-jawed with the things that he felt it was appropriate to say,” Smith said during an interview on Sunday for the LBC podcast.
“It was a state dinner for the Saudi royal family and he made racist comments about Arabs that were unbelievable. The fact he thought we might find this amusing was sort of a terrible situation to be in. I don’t think he’s very bright. I don’t think he really understands the way in which he behaves. He’s the worst end of the royal family, I think…. I am not going to tell you exactly what he said but it involved a comment about camels. It is as worse as you could imagine,” she added.
According to reports, the Saudi royal family was honoured with a state banquet at Buckingham Palace in 2007, in which Prince Andrew was seated next to the late King Abdullah.
In response to the allegations, a Buckingham Palace spokesperson on Tuesday issued the following statement: “HRH has undertaken a considerable amount of work in the Middle East over a period of years and has many friends from the region. He does not tolerate racism in any form.”
