Prince Andrew preempts Prince William, Kate Middleton's bid to stop him

Before Prince William, Kate Middleton or any other member of the royal family could have insulted him by stopping him from King Charles' pre-Christmas lunch, Prince Andrew himself has decided to pull out of the event where his family would be united.

If the UK media reports are anything to go by, the Duke of York took the decision on the advice of his former wife and mother of his daughters, Sarah Ferguson.

After Andrew was linked to a Chinese spy in a new scandal, several reports suggested that Prince William and Kate Middleton would object to his presence at the lunch.

A few days ago a media outlet said in an unconfirmed report that King Charles had advised his younger brother to attend the party discreetly.

A Chinese national with close links to Prince Andrew said he had done nothing wrong and was not a spy, after the businessman was named in court as being a suspected Chinese agent by the British authorities.

Yang Tengbo, described in a ruling last week by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) as a "close confidant" of Andrew, waived his right to anonymity on Monday so he could respond to the accusation.

"I have done nothing wrong or unlawful, and the concerns raised by the Home Office against me are ill-founded," he said in a statement released by his lawyer, referring to Britain's interior ministry. "The widespread description of me as a 'spy' is entirely untrue."