Newstalk ZB
A slice of Antarctica named after former Prince Andrew could soon be renamed, with the Geographic Board considering options. The 74 kilometre Prince Andrew Plateau was named after King Charles’ brother in 1962, two years after his birth. But the board is now considering options to rename the landmark, given the King’s removal of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s royal titles, and his subsequent arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office. The plateau sits among the Queen Elizabeth Range within the Ross Dependency, New Zealand’s territorial claim in Antarctica. Other landmarks in the range are also named after Queen Elizabeth’s children, including glaciers named after Princess Anne and the Prince of Wales. According to documents released under the Official Information Act, a Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) official emailed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) on December 3 last year. The LINZ official noted its Antarctic Naming Committee was considering the name of Prince Andrew Plateau given recent developments and a suggestion from a member of the public. MFAT forwarded the query to the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) – and asked whether any consultation was required with the King before a name change. Much of the response is redacted, but DPMC noted in its advice that using the names of Royals requires approval from Buckingham Palace. The DPMC official suggested swapping the name of the plateau to that of another Royal might not be approved, given nearby features were all named after other children of Queen Elizabeth II. The advice from DPMC suggested the Antarctic Naming Committee consider other options, including an entirely new name or leaving the plateau unnamed. The Antarctic Naming Committee is a sub-committee of the New Zealand Geographic Board, which consults and decides on place names within the New Zealand territory. In a statement, board secretary Wendy Shaw said the proposal to change the name was considered at a meeting in April – but a final decision was deferred until later in the year. “The NZGB does not currently have a confirmed date set for when this decision will be made,” Shaw said. “The board has two further hui scheduled for the remainder of this year. Of those, it is more likely that the matter will be considered at the second hui, which is currently scheduled for October 13.” Mountbatten-Windsor has come under intense scrutiny in recent years, beginning in 2019 when questioned over his friendship with financier and paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. After a disastrous interview the same year, the then-Prince stepped down from royal duties. Scrutiny continued, resulting in King Charles stripping Mountbatten-Windsor of his titles in October. In December, New Zealand formally stripped Mountbatten-Windsor of a Commemoration Medal presented to him in 1990, as part of sesquicentennial celebrations. In February, he was arrested and released over allegations of misconduct in public office. Shortly afterwards, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said New Zealand would support removing Andrew from the line of succession, should the UK Government wish. Ethan Griffiths is a political reporter with Newstalk ZB, based in the Parliamentary Press Gallery. He joined NZME as a print journalist in 2020, previously working as an Open Justice reporter in the Bay of Plenty and Wellington, and as a general reporter in Whanganui.
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