Daily Mail

Wills meets Duchy chiefs in Paradise Papers row

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AWKWArd timing for the duke of Cambridge. On the same day that Prince Charles was dragged into a furore over offshore investment­s, his son Prince William received two officials from the duchy of Cornwall at Kensington Palace.

Wills had a private audience with Alastair Martin, secretary of the duchy, and Keith Willis, the finance director.

It has been claimed that Prince Charles lobbied to alter climate change policy after his private estate secretly invested £ 86,000 in an offshore carbon credits firm run by a close friend.

Prince Charles made a series of speeches on the rules surroundin­g carbon credits following the duchy of Cornwall’s purchase of shares in Sustainabl­e Forestry Management.

The estate almost tripled the value of its investment­s over the course of a year.

Although officials say Charles had no direct involvemen­t in investment­s made by the duchy, he was criticised for what appeared to be a conflict of interest. The deal was revealed in the so-called Paradise Papers, just days after the leaked documents showed that more than £10 million of the Queen’s fortune was invested in off-shore tax havens.

Kensington Palace declines to say whether the Paradise Papers were discussed with William at Tuesday’s meeting.

Prince William will inherit the duchy of Cornwall — the £1 billion portfolio of land and property — when his father becomes king.

William first attended a meeting of the Prince’s Council , which oversees the management of the duchy, in 2011.

Last year, he visited duchy projects in Cornwall and the Scillies with the duchess of Cambridge.

He will be in charge of the duchy’s 133,658 acres of land in more than 23 counties, including farming and residentia­l and commercial properties, as well as an investment portfolio.

The duchy was created in 1337 by Edward III specifical­ly to provide an income for the heir apparent.

In the last financial year, it generated an income for Charles of £20.7 million.

A spokesman for Kensington Palace says: ‘This was a regular scheduled meeting that has been in the diary for some time.’

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