Sarah Ferguson was given the ‘Freedom of the City of York’ after visiting with her new husband – then Prince Andrew – in 1987 but a vote could see the honour taken away
Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York, could be stripped of her “Freedom of the City of York” honour tonight.
An extraordinary meeting is being held in the historic city to vote on removing the honorary freedom status. It was gifted to her in 1987 during a visit to the city after the nation celebrated her marriage to the then Prince Andrew.
In 2022 the council decided to strip her ex-husband of the same honour, which was previously awarded to Winston Churchill and Judi Dench.
Last October Mr Mountbatten-Windsor was stripped of all his royal titles following further revelations and photos highlighting his links with Epstein. His wife also stopped using her title of ‘Duchess of York’ following Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s surrender of his royal titles due to the scandal. Mr Mountbatten-Windsor has vigorously denied any wrongdoing.
Fergie had been allowed to use the title after the couple divorced in 1996 divorce, but now she uses her maiden name, Sarah Ferguson.
Councillor Claire Douglas, City of York Council’s Labour leader, said last October it was deplorable that anyone bearing titles linked to the city had associated with Epstein after his crimes became known. The vote is due to be held on Thursday evening.
This latest humiliation follows mounting pressure on Sarah Ferguson because of her past links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who she once described as the ‘brother I always wished for’.
Anger further erupted after a 2011 email from Ferguson to Epstein surfaced, where she referred to him as a “steadfast,” “generous,” and “supreme friend” to her and her family, despite his earlier conviction.
A spokesperson for the former duchess, now aged 66, said the email was sent in response to legal threats from Epstein after her comments that her involvement with him was a ‘gigantic error of judgment’.
The controversy led to multiple charities dropping her as a patron or ambassador in late 2025. There have been claims that Ms Ferguson is considering a tell-all TV chat but there are mounting calls for her to give evidence concerning her links to Jeffrey Epstein.
US lawmakers have repeatedly called for her former husband, who has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office in February, to answer questions about his links to the late American financier and sex offender. Now Ferguson is being urged to do the same.
Congressman Suhas Subramanyam, a member of the House Oversight Committee investigating the handling of Epstein’s prosecution, said he now believed she had “information related to the investigation”.
“Sarah Ferguson should give sworn testimony to our committee,” he said. There is no legal mechanism to compel Ferguson to testify in the US. But Subramanyam told the BBC that lawmakers would be “happy to work out terms that work for her”, as long as she was under oath.
The family of prominent Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre also said they “strongly believed” the former Duchess of York should go to the US to answer questions.
“If Ferguson knows anything, she should testify in the United States immediately,” a representative for Giuffre’s brother Sky Roberts told the BBC.
