York residents say they could be the next Duke of York amid calls for Prince Andrew to lose the title
- The MP for York has said Prince Andrew should lose his title of the Duke of York.
- Her call comes after Queen Elizabeth stripped her son of all military titles Thursday.
York's MP has called for Prince Andrew to lose the title of the Duke of York after he was stripped of his military titles by the Queen on Thursday.
Rachael Maskell added her voice to other civic representatives in the city of York, England, that want to cut ties with Prince Andrew, writing in a tweet on Thursday that it was "untenable" for him to keep the title.
Insider walked around York on Friday afternoon, speaking to residents and visitors, getting their thoughts on whether they believe Prince Andrew should lose the title.
Outside York Minster, Michelle, in her early 60s, said: "If there's no prosecution, I would be inclined not to do anything at the moment with the title of the Duke of York. If he's guilty, then yes, he shouldn't hold the title."
"It'll leave a bad reputation on York. I only come here for nights out — but it would get a bad reputation from other people, why is he still the Duke of York?" said Karlis, 21.
King's Square is home to the Duke of York pub, where Rich, a bartender, told Insider how the phones and emails had been coming in all day about Prince Andrew.
Jamie and Isaac, 18-year-old students, supported calls for Prince Andrew to lose the title.
Isaac said: "I wouldn't want someone with that kind of accusation against his name to represent where I live."
Jamie said: "The fact they've only stripped him of those titles and they've kept the Duke of York, to me it's very performative. To me it's like, 'Yeah, we're against this, but we're not going to go all the way.' I feel like it makes us look like we accept him."
Peter Charlton, a 67-year-old retiree had sympathy for the Queen. He told Insider: "It hasn't been proved he's done anything wrong. [The title] should stand. He's divorced himself from the Royal Family, hopefully take a bit of heat off the Queen. The Queen doesn't deserve it, does she?"
It would take an Act of Parliament to remove the title of Duke of York, a royal expert told Insider on Friday. On Parliament Street, residents put themselves forward as the next Duke of York.
Phil, 65, a greenskeeper, said: "He shouldn't have the title. Take it away now. It should never got into the situation of going to court. I've seen Queenie. She came to open the university. Never seen the Duke of York. Give it to one of William's kids. Or I'll have it, I've lived here all my life."
Cameron, 19, a student at the University of York, said: "Definitely take it away. I'll take it up, why not. I don't know. Why do we need a Duke of York?"
"If they offer, I'll think about it. I'm quite busy, though," Connor, 22, said outside the House of Trembling Madness on Stonegate where he works. "So long as I can open a building in half an hour, and it's within five minutes of this place, I'll take it."
Representatives for Prince Andrew did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.