Duchess of Edinburgh makes first public appearance since Prince Edward’s remarks

Their Majesties hosted a reception at the Palace for around 350 guests from local authorities across England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland.

Sophie, 61, was joined by the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester as part of the Royal Family presence for the event.

The reception was held to mark the contribution of local Government to communities throughout the UK, with invited guests representing a wide range of roles.

Attendees included social workers and leaders working on Violence Against Women and Girls, as well as headteachers, public health workers and disability services coordinators.

Prince Edward did not attend the reception because he was in Dubai on Tuesday for the World Governments Summit.

While there, he was asked about the newly released tranche of US Department of Justice material connected to Jeffrey Epstein.

The files have renewed scrutiny directed towards his older brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, and former sister-in-law, Sarah Ferguson.

In his response, the Duke of Edinburgh did not address the substance of the allegations against Andrew.

However, he stressed the importance of focusing on those harmed by Epstein, saying it was “really important always to remember the victims” and adding there were “a lot of victims”.

The comments were made during an exchange filmed at the summit.

Back in London, the reception at St James’s Palace continued the Royal Family’s programme of recognising public service and community-facing work.

Guests were welcomed from across the four nations, reflecting the breadth of responsibilities carried by councils and local authorities.

Local and regional Government delivers services that many people rely on day to day, and the invited guests represented frontline work supporting families, vulnerable people and those in need of specialist care.

The guest list also reflected the range of public responsibilities carried locally, from safeguarding and education to health initiatives and disability support.

Elsewhere in royal news, the Princess of Wales travelled to west Wales today to visit Melin Tregwynt, a woollen mill weaving traditional Welsh designs in a remote wooded valley on the Pembrokeshire coast.

Catherine met Melin Tregwynt’s director, Louise Clarke and then spent time with weavers at the loom.

The future queen learned about the skills required for Welsh double cloth weaving, which Melin Tregwynt is renowned for.