PRINCE Andrew has been spotted with his ex-wife after it was revealed he would no longer attend the royal Christmas in Sandringham.
The disgraced Duke left Windsor around quarter to three this afternoon, leaving minutes before the King’s speech was broadcast to the nation.
The Duke of York, 64, was reported to have declined the annual festivities hosted by King Charles.
He drove away from his home, Royal Lodge, which he continues to share with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.
It comes after the Duke was recently revealed to be entangled in a Chinese spy scandal.
He has been described as a “close confidant” of alleged Chinese spy Yang Tengbo.
It is thought the pair shared a friendship for more than ten years with the latter being banned from the UK on national security grounds.
The prince’s biographer Andrew Lownie told The Sun’s Royal Exclusive show this week the spy scandal is “probably the most damaging”.
He said: “It’s more damaging than Epstein. I think the story is going to run right through next year.
“He’s always been much more vulnerable to the financial scandals in his life than the sexual ones.
“These stories haven’t really been investigated. It’s going to have to lead to greater transparency about royal finances.
“This has unlocked a whole series of events that I think are going to be very damaging to the monarchy.
“This is going to give fresh impetus to journalists to look into his financial affairs and how he affords to live in Royal Lodge.
“A lot more is still to come out. A lot has already come out in the past week about his activities.
“It’s the tip of the iceberg. He’s been scrounging money off people in the Middle East and Central Asia.
“When those stories come out, I think he’s going to be complete toast.
“The danger is that he’s going to bring the royal family down with him.”
In a statement issued two weeks ago, Andrew’s office said: “The Duke of York followed advice from HMG and ceased all contact with the individual after concerns were raised.
“The duke met the individual through official channels, with nothing of a sensitive nature ever discussed.
“He is unable to comment further on matters relating to national security.”
The suspected spy previously lost an appeal which led to the scandal being brought to the public eye.
In their ruling, the judges pointed to what they called the “unusual degree of trust” the man had from a senior royal.
They added: “It is obvious that the pressures on the duke could make him vulnerable to the misuse of that sort of influence.”
The man, known as H6, was banned last year by then-Home Secretary Suella Braverman after officials flagged concerns.
Earlier this week, experts revealed that the Prince would never go to Sandringham again to save Charles from humiliation.
Biographer Andrew Lownie told The Sun’s Royal Exclusive show: “I don’t think he’s going to go to Sandringham ever again.”
He added the other royals “need to distance themselves from him” to save any further embarrassment.
Lownie described how the Prince had been “forced” out of the festive celebrations.
By JACK ELSOM, Chief Political Correspondent
CHINA must be put in the highest threat category of a new foreign influence register, MPs tonight demanded.
Ministers were accused of dragging their feet after confirming the list of shadowy operators will not go live for at least six months.
The Beijing “spy” row sparked angry exchanges between Labour and the Tories, with both parties claiming the other had recklessly sucked up to the Communist regime.
It saw Sir Keir Starmer slammed for taking a “sycophantic tone” with President Xi at the G20 summit last month.
Security Minister Dan Jarvis said the long-awaited Foreign Influence Registration Scheme will launch next summer.
The programme – announced under the Conservatives – will force people working for overseas powers to declare their activities to the Home Office.
It is divided into two tiers, with the highest “enhanced tier” for hostile states that require additional vetting.
Government source have told The Sun that China was currently not being earmarked for that category.
Former Tory security minister Tom Tugendhat, who spearheaded the scheme in government, yesterday said: “The advice from MI5 was very very clear. If China isn’t in the enhanced tier it’s not worth having.”
Ex-Home Secretary Suella Braverman added: “Isn’t it regrettable that it has taken a high-profile case, public outcry, and the Opposition dragging the Minister to the chamber to finally get the government to commit to implement the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme.”
And former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith blasted: “How was it that somebody who was known for the security committee forces was allowed to get so close to a member of the royal family without proper scrutiny exposing him.”
Mr Jarvis insisted the Government would not hesitate to use “every tool at our disposal” to keep Britain safe – and blamed the Tories for leaving the register plans in disarray.
He said: “Where there are individuals who pose a threat to our national security, we are committed to using the full range of powers available to disrupt them.”
Conservative Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp attacked Sir Keir’s summit sitdown with President Xi last month.
He said: “Given what we’ve learned and what we know, these very close relations that the prime minister is apparently attempting may not be wise, and the rather sycophantic tone the prime minister took with President Xi at the G20 a few weeks ago may not be very wise in light of what we now.”
Highlighting David Cameron’s infamous beer with the China strongman, Mr Jarvis shot back: “At least he did not take him to the pub for a pint.”
