He’s done just 13 days’ royal duties this year
PrINCe William has undertaken just 13 days of official duties so far this year, it has been revealed.
The royal faces accusations of being ‘workshy’ as by contrast, the Queen, 91 next month, has managed 24 days of engagements in addition to the red boxes of official papers she works through every day.
The future king, 34, was back with his wife the Duchess of Cambridge and their children at Anmer Hall in Norfolk yesterday after missing a Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey attended by the rest of the royal Family on Monday to continue a boys-only weekend in Verbier.
He was also due back on shift at east Anglian Air Ambulance, where he works as a part-time pilot, in advance of an official trip to Paris later this week.
The criticism he is likely to face after he was pictured downing shots with two attractive blonde bar workers during the five-day jolly with a group of his closest friends, is unlikely to be helped by the emergence of a video showing the prince dancing in Verbier’s Farinet nightclub in the early hours of Monday. The footage of him waving his arms rave-style was first published by US celebrity news website TMZ and quickly spread around the world, being picked up in many Commonwealth countries. The prince was accompanied by at least two taxpayer-funded Scotland Yard officers, who can be seen in the video.
on Sunday William was photographed downing drinks on the slopes with two cocktail bar hostesses he and his group had met in the club the previous night.
He was seen ‘high-fiving’ Sophie Taylor, a 24-year-old would-be model from Australia. The second girl he was pictured with was Blackpoolborn rosie Peate, a trained beautician who divides her time between the party island of Ibiza and the Swiss ski slopes. She refused to comment on the photographs yesterday but her uncle roger Peate confirmed that the family had been gossiping about her royal encounter.
William, who returned home on Monday night, has repeatedly dismissed accusations that he is workshy but so far this year has undertaken just 18 engagements according to the Court Circular, the official record of royal engagements. His part-time job as a pilot for east Anglia Air Ambulance requires him to work around 80 hours a month.
He took the position in order to move his young family to Norfolk, away from the public gaze.
But the situation has led to repeated criticism that he is failing to pull his weight in either role.
Last year both the Queen and Prince Philip, 95, conducted more engagements than their grandson, who undertook 188. The Queen packed 332 visits and meetings into her diary, and Philip 219.
William announced in January that he will leave his pilot’s job in the summer to become a full-time working royal. He will spend more time in London with his family, and says he and Kate plan to increase their official duties and their charity work.
Graham Smith, chief executive of anti-monarchy campaigners republic, said: ‘William clearly isn’t that interested in taking his role seriously, and I wonder if he really wants to be king. The taxpayer has stumped up millions of pounds. If he’s not interested in fulfilling his side of the bargain we should kick him out of Kensington Palace and insist he pays his own way.’
But royal biographer Ingrid Seward defended William, saying: ‘He does a huge amount of work, he attends a lot of events and is very dedicated. He’s allowed a bit of time off.’
Kensington Palace would not confirm whether William was ‘excused’ from the Commonwealth Day ceremony, but said he had attended the celebrations previously and would do so again in the future.
‘He isn’t taking his role seriously’