INTERNATIONAL: Prince Andrew's decision to settle a claim that he sexually assaulted a teenage girl decades ago may bring an end to his legal difficulties but the damage done to his reputation means he is unlikely to ever play a role in public life again.

The settlement by the 61-year-old Duke of York includes an undisclosed payment to Virginia Giuffre, a woman who had accused him of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager. The settlement, revealed on Tuesday,February 15, in a Manhattan court filing, said he had never intended to malign her character.

The leader of Britain's Women's Equality Party, Mandu Reid, has expressed her anger about the settlement agreement, arguing this was an "example of a powerful, wealthy man being able to wield his power and his wealth to allow him to dodge accountability for some very serious allegations that have been made against him."

Graham Smith, the head of the anti-monarchy group Republic, has questioned how the undisclosed damages were being funded.

"There are lots of questions about Andrew's personal wealth and where he, how he managed to fund the lifestyle that he leads," he has mentioned.

"Because most of their money does comes from us in one way or another and that is clearly something which the public have a right to know about." Buckingham Palace has declined to comment on the settlement.

^{PHOTO: SOUNDBITES FROM LEADER OF UK WOMEN'S EQUALITY PARTY, MANDU REID, AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF ANTI-MONARCHY GROUP REPUBLIC, GRAHAM SMITH, IN REACTION TO BRITAIN'S PRINCE ANDREW SETTLING A U.S. LAWSUIT BY VIRGINIA GIUFFRE, WHO ACCUSED HIM OF SEXUALLY ABUSING HER WHEN SHE WAS A TEENAGER}