Prince Charles at the Copenhagen climate change conference, 15 December. Photo credit: Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Prince Charles faces accusations of “meddling” in government affairs after an investigation by The Guardian revealed letters written by the Prince directly to the ministers of eight Whitehall departments. The report, which appeared yesterday afternoon, was the result of several freedom of information requests by the paper and established that since 2006, Prince Charles and his advisors have been writing to ministers on everything from hospital architecture to eco-towns.

The BBC reported today that, in the wake of the revelations, senior Liberal Democrat MP, Chris Huhne said that the prince “has to be very careful to respect the traditional separation between the democratically accountable parts of the constitution and the ceremonial parts.” Clarence House has denied that the Prince attempted to exercise any undue pressure on government policy and claimed that he has the right to express his opinion; former minister for Sport, Richard Caborn, said that while the Prince is entitled to express his views, he should make them public, rather than writing privately to government officials.

The content of the Prince’s letters was not released, but documents also revealed that the Prince’s advisers pressed ministers on different policies, writing to a total of five different government departments, reported The Guardian.

This recent disclosures have fuelled the growing concern over Prince Charles’s involvement in politics; many feel that it is crucial for him to protect his neutrality on government issues if he wants to become King of England. Evidence of his interference in architectural policies surfaced in the past: In June of this year, the prince won a battle to have the modern building design of the Chelsea Barracks site dropped. It was also claimed that he tried to prevent award-winning French architect Jean Nouvel from building a One New Change office and shops complex next to St. Paul’s Cathedral, reported The Telegraph.

The prince’s aides have defended his actions, denying he “bombards” ministers. Principal Private Secretary Sir Michael Peat said in 2007, “His royal highness is always very careful to ensure he is not politically contentious or party political.” A spokesman for the prince told The Guardian, “It is generally accepted that the heir to the throne should be aware of the business of government and that correspondence between government ministers should be treated as private and confidential on all sides.”