Harry and Meghan Have Not Said a Word About Andrew — a PR Expert Says That’s Deliberate
The Duke of Sussex declined to comment on his uncle's misconduct arrest during a Channel 4 interview in Jordan, and a PR expert says the decision was anything but accidental.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest has put the royal family in an extraordinarily uncomfortable position. For Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, estranged from the institution, no strangers to scrutiny, and trying to build something entirely their own, it has presented a different kind of problem altogether. According to one PR expert, they are currently "navigating a minefield," and so far, they appear to be doing it rather carefully.
The moment that crystallised that approach came in February, when Harry and Markle traveled to Jordan to shine a light on the humanitarian efforts supporting displaced Syrians and Palestinians who have sought sanctuary there over many decades. It was a trip with an urgent purpose, and as it drew to a close, Harry sat down with Channel 4 News to issue a direct plea for aid corridors into Gaza to be opened. Before he could get there, however, a question that would have seemed obvious given what was going on in the UK was raised.
A journalist asked about his uncle, Mountbatten-Windsor. However, Harry declined to answer, kept his focus squarely on Jordan's humanitarian crisis, and moved on. PR expert Lynn Carratt has been closely watching the couple's handling of the situation, and she believes the silence is anything but passive. "By choosing silence on the Andrew situation, Harry and Meghan are navigating a minefield," she told GB News.
"Their own experiences with intense media scrutiny make commentary a risky business; one offhand remark could be sensationalised or politicised." Carratt went further, framing the couple's restraint as a carefully considered position. "Silence here is a deliberate, strategic choice, allowing them to maintain distance while avoiding unnecessary conflict," she said. "From a PR perspective, it's arguably the smartest move: they avoid fueling controversy, and instead allow the conversation to remain centred on constitutional and familial matters rather than personal opinion. Sometimes, saying nothing is the most powerful statement."
What makes their restraint all the more striking is the context in which it is playing out. Mountbatten-Windsor — stripped of his royal titles by King Charles and forced out of his Royal Lodge residence — was arrested by Windsor police in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office over his ties to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. It is a scandal that has rattled the monarchy at its foundations, drawing calls for Mountbatten-Windsor to testify before the U.S. Congress from figures as varied as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Hillary Clinton, and Vice President J.D. Vance.
For Harry and Markle, wading into that particular storm would serve no one, least of all themselves. Instead, the couple has kept their eyes firmly forward. In early March, a spokesman confirmed that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will visit Australia in mid-April for a series of private, business, and philanthropic engagements, with further details to be shared in due course. Their children, Archie and Lilibet, are not expected to join them for the trip.
