Prince Andrew should be ‘forgiven’ for sexual assault case, Archbishop advises

The Archbishop of Canterbury has suggested that Prince Andrew is ‘seeking to make amends’ over his sex scandal and that the public should ‘step back a bit’ and consider forgiveness, reported The Evening Standard.

In an interview with ITV News’ Tom Bradby on Tuesday, Archbishop Justin Welby opened up about what forgiveness for Prince Andrew over the fiasco would mean.

Welby said: “Forgiveness really does matter. I think we have become a very, very unforgiving society. There’s a difference between consequences and forgiveness.”

“I think for all of us, one of the ways that we celebrate when we come together is in learning to be a more open and forgiving society,” he added.

The archbishop further said: “Now with Prince Andrew, I think we all have to step back a bit. He’s seeking to make amends and I think that’s a very good thing. But you can’t tell people how they’re to respond about this.”

“… And the issues of the past in the area of abuse are so intensely personal and private for so many people. It’s not surprising. There’re very deep feelings, indeed,” he concluded.

For the unversed, Prince Andrew settled a sexual assault suit brought against him by Virginia Giuffre, who claimed that the Duke of York sexually assaulted her in the early 2000’s.