Black Spider Memo's to be released

[TomandJerry]

Hmmm, not a list that grabs the attention so far. Does he say anything silly?

Not really, so far its proving just how down to earth he is!

"As we trawl through the cache of correspondence, it’s becoming clear that Prince Charles wrote to ministers almost exclusively on matters that are well known to be his closely-held personal interests.

Farming, the environment, armed forces, supermarkets, architecture, schools, Prince’s Foundation projects, badger culling and even Patagonian toothfish and albatrosses."

"Prince Charles also wrote to ministers:

Inviting them to attend a conference on architecture to give them a perspective on “vital aspects” of urban design.
Raising concerns over the “fate of sea birds” and “illegal fishing”.
Addressing problems in schools in South Gloucestershire in relation to diets of pupils.
To arrange meetings with charity representatives, including In Kind Direct, which redistribute products from companies to charities.
Rebuilding historic buildings in Northern Ireland."

 

[TomandJerry]

"Prince Charles expresses strong concern over difficulties faced by the military in Iraq, particularly resources and the poor performance of Lynx helicopters.

The aim of the Ministry of Defence and the Air Army Corps to deploy this equipment globally is, however, being frustrated by the poor performance of the existing Lynx aircraft in high temperatures.

Despite this, the procurement of a new aircraft to replace the Lynx is subject to further delays and uncertainty due to significant pressure on the defence budget.

I fear this is just one more example of where our Armed Forces are being asked to do an extremely challenging job (particularly in Iraq) without the necessary resources."

 

[TomandJerry]

"David Cameron is to try to build up a cross-party consensus with the aim of guaranteeing that ministers will be able to veto the publication of documents under freedom of information requests in exceptional circumstances.

As 27 memos between the Prince of Wales and ministers in the last government are set to be published, Downing Street indicated that legislation might be introduced to guarantee a blanket ministerial veto over publication.

A change in 2011 means that an absolute veto is now in place, covering correspondence from the monarch, the heir to the throne and the second in line – currently the Queen, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge. The memos by the Prince of Wales are being published because the Guardian submitted a freedom of information request before the change in 2011."

 

[glasfryn]

Worryingly it could show that Charles is in touch with the Common Man and asking the government ministers pertinent questions, which I believe is a right that extends to all of us ?

you can ask
but will you ever get any answers

 

[tinycowboy]

It seems to me that these letters are revealing that:

(a) Prince Charles is reasonably informed on a number of general topics, and
(b) He has ideas about these topics

Nothing scandalous so far, or evidence that he has been exerting influence, unless we see a clear trend of Charles "suggesting" and governments implementing.

 

[deletebeepbeepbeep]

I don't like the royals but there is nothing of real interest here (and I respect Charles for standing and speaking passionately about subjects he cares about) and it just strikes me that the Guardian is trying to stoke its own fire. The most newsworthy thing from this is the subsequent amendment to the freedom of information regulations which mean that any freedom of information request made in relation to the Royals can now be declined directly. Which seems wrong.

The thing is. the Guardian are getting on their high horses about this when they and other media outlets have a far greater influence on decision making in this country than Prince Charles could hope to have,

 

[Screaming J]

Hmm, if there is nothing sensational in what's been released then why was Chazzo/the Government so resistant to them being released in the first place? Silly asses.

 

[vegster]

This is terrible news for the Monarchy, Prince Charles proved to care about the Armed Forces, Architecture and the environment shock !

 

[Official Old Man]

I've read some of them and don't understand all the fuss. In one HRH writes to Blair about the dairy farmers and how the Office of Fair Trading was restricting our farmers whilst letting EU farmers have different legislation. All he seems to do is stand up for his people.