Will Lord Snowdon have his say on Brexit debate?

THE QUEEN frowns on members of the royal firm meddling in politics, but her nephew David Armstrong-Jones, the 2nd Earl of Snowdon, is refusing to toe the party line.

After making millions fitting out oligarchs’ yachts, I can reveal the top- drawer furniture-maker is bidding to become the first member of the Royal Family to stand for Parliament.

Earlier this week, Lord Snowdon — known by his professional name of David Linley — applied to be added to the parliamentary Register of Hereditary Peers, indicating he is willing to be elected to the Lords when the next by- election takes place.

A spokesman for the Lords says: ‘If David Linley wishes to stand to become a member of the House of Lords during a by-election, he would be eligible to.’

The Westminster ambitions of Lord Snowdon are a radical departure from royal protocol. The Prince of Wales, the Duke of York, the Duke of Kent and the Earl of Wessex all waived their right to remain in the Lords when Tony Blair culled the number of hereditary peers in 1999.

The Duke of Edinburgh also stepped down. But Lord Snowdon, who is 18th in line to throne, risks becoming embroiled in controversy if he contributes to political debates.

His father, the first Earl of Snowdon, ceased to be a member of the Royal Family following his divorce from Princess Margaret in 1978.

But he clung on to his seat in the Lords by accepting a life peerage in 1999, despite outrage over his poor contribution to debates.

The Palace distanced itself from the earl at the time, saying the decision was ‘a matter for him’.

When Lord Snowdon, born Antony Armstrong- Jones, died in January aged 86, David Armstrong- Jones inherited the earldom, but not his father’s seat on the red benches.

His application to join the Register of Hereditary Peers means he could be voted in to the Lords in the next by-election, which will be held when one of the current 92 hereditary peers dies or retires.

Linley, 55, was once a committee member of the Conservative Party’s fundraising Black and White Ball, but his views on the Brexit debate are not known.

A spokesman for Lord Snowdon says: ‘We have nothing to add.’