Prince Charles ‘should end secrecy around his estate’

THE Prince of Wales should register all his interests to prevent secrecy surrounding his private estate, a royal financial expert has warned.

Charles is embroiled in the Paradise Papers leak after it was reported that he lobbied for a change to two climate change deals after the Duchy of Cornwall, which is controlled by the prince, invested in an offshore carbon credit trading company.

David McClure, author of Royal Legacy – an investigation into royal finances – yesterday told the BBC: ‘When Prince Charles makes a variety of speeches on ecological issues, while at the same time he has had a shareholding in companies, we know nothing about it. Maybe it is totally innocuous, the whole thing that has happened, but it would be far better if [the Prince] just registered all his interests. What is he hiding?’

The Duchy of Cornwall – which provides Charles with his annual income – paid $113,500 in 2007 for 50 shares in Bermudaregistered Sustainable Forestry Management.

The heir to the British throne later lobbied for a change to two climate change deals that would have directly benefited the business, the BBC and The Guardian reported.

A spokesman for Clarence House denied that Charles had spoken out on the two deals to benefit financially.

‘The Prince has never chosen to speak out on a topic simply because of a company that the Duchy may have invested in,’ he said.

‘In the case of climate change, his views are well known; indeed, he has been warning of the threat of global warming to our environment for over 30 years.’