UK PM Andy Burnham Weighs Public Inquiry Into Epstein and Al Fayed as Andrew Still Won't Talk to Congress

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is "looking into" whether to hold a public inquiry into Jeffrey Epstein's activities in the UK, according to victims minister Alex Davies-Jones, who spoke to BBC Newsnight. Davies-Jones said Starmer has agreed to meet with Epstein's victims and that the government is also reviewing whether to fold in allegations against the late Mohamed Al Fayed, the former Harrods owner accused by numerous women of sexual abuse.

"We are looking at this, we are reviewing what is possible," Davies-Jones told Newsnight. "He will meet with those victims and he is looking at what is possible, now he has access to all of the information as prime minister to see what action we can take."

Davies-Jones has her own history on this issue. She resigned from Keir Starmer's government in May, then told the House of Commons in June that Epstein survivors have too often been "reduced to a footnote." Starmer reappointed her to the victims minister role, and she says she raised the inquiry idea with him directly, alongside cabinet secretary Dame Antonia Romeo.

According to BBC Newsnight, Starmer was handed a document from Labour campaigners on Violence Against Women and Girls. That document called for a full public inquiry covering three separate threads: Epstein's UK activities, the allegations against Al Fayed, and claims reported by BBC Panorama and The Times that West Ham co-owner David Sullivan preyed on women. Sullivan has denied the allegations, saying he is "absolutely not the person the media has decided to paint me as."

The document reportedly frames this as an "impunity" inquiry, aimed at examining how powerful men allegedly got away with abuse for years. On Epstein specifically, it calls for scrutiny of UK border controls and how Epstein was able to fly in and out of British military bases on his private jet, in some cases allegedly with trafficked women aboard. Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown has previously flagged those border questions publicly.

None of this has resulted in a formal inquiry yet. Starmer is reviewing options, not launching one. That distinction matters given how long these allegations have circulated without a formal UK government investigation.

Andrew Still Hasn't Answered Congress

While London debates whether to investigate, Washington is still waiting on Prince Andrew. The House Oversight Committee sent him a written request late last year asking him to testify by video link about what he knew of Epstein's trafficking network. According to the Daily Express, lawmakers on the committee are frustrated he hasn't responded.

Andrew, who now goes by Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor after being stripped of his royal titles, has repeatedly denied wrongdoing. He settled a civil suit brought by Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre in 2022, and at the time issued a statement praising the bravery of Epstein's victims and saying he would assist them "in any way" he could. He has not testified before Congress or answered the Oversight Committee's request as of this writing.

Attorney Spencer Kuvin, who represents Epstein victims, told the Express that King Charles and Starmer should use their positions to pressure Andrew directly. "Both these British leaders have expressed their support for the women who were underage victims of a monster," Kuvin said. "But I believe it's now time for them to use their power and influence to put real pressure on Andrew by urging him as strongly as possible to cooperate with US authorities and tell the world what he saw and heard."

Kuvin also said lawmakers in New Mexico want to question Andrew about a visit to Epstein's Zorro Ranch property, and that he has spoken with the state's attorney general, who he says is "anxious to talk to Andrew" as well. No New Mexico investigation involving Andrew has been announced publicly.

Andrew's civil settlement with Giuffre was not an admission of guilt, and he has never been criminally charged in connection with Epstein. The push from Congress and from Kuvin is a request for cooperation, not evidence of a crime. Andrew declining to testify voluntarily is not itself illegal, though it's also not the "any way I could" assistance he pledged in 2022.

What's Actually Been Confirmed

Davies-Jones says a Starmer meeting with Epstein victims has been promised, not yet held on record. Epstein survivor Lisa Phillips met with MPs in London roughly four weeks before the Express report and afterward called Starmer "the most supportive" politician she'd encountered on the question of a UK public inquiry. King Charles, in an April address to Congress during his official visit, referenced supporting victims of "ills that, so tragically, exist in both our societies," though he did not name Epstein or Andrew specifically in that remark.

The open questions are straightforward: will Starmer actually launch a formal inquiry, will it include Al Fayed and Sullivan alongside Epstein, and will Andrew ever sit for a Congressional interview. None of those have answers yet. The House Oversight Committee's request to Andrew remains outstanding, and no date has been set for the Starmer-victims meeting Davies-Jones described.