Prince Philip, 97, gives up licence after car crash

Queen Elizabeth II’s 97-yearold husband Prince Philip on Saturday surrendered his driving licence after causing a car crash that outraged the media and stirred a debate about old age and driving. Buckingham Palace said Philip -- formally known as the Duke of Edinburgh -- took the decision on his own after rolling over his Land Rover last month.

“After careful consideration the Duke of Edinburgh has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence,” Buckingham Palace said in a brief statement. Police in the eastern part of England where the accident happened outside a royal residence said they had passed Philip’s file to prosecutors to determine whether anyone should be charged.

“Norfolk Police can confirm that the 97-year-old driver of the Land Rover involved in the collision at Sandringham ... voluntarily surrendered his licence to officers,” said a police statement. “The investigation file for the collision has been passed to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for their consideration.”

A CPS spokesman said the service “will take this development into account” as it studies Philip’s case. Few royal watchers seriously expect the duke to be punished by the police. A witness told British media that Philip had emerged unharmed but “shocked and shaken” from the collision with the much smaller Kia hatchback. Police said a nine-month-old baby in the back seat of Kia was uninjured. One woman in the vehicle broke her wrist and the other cut her knee.