Campaigners have criticised the royals for failing to declare gifts in line with rules followed by politicians.

The comments come after an Observer article which disclosed the royals haven't published any record of gifts since 2019.

Despite having direct access to government papers and government ministers, and leverage with which to lobby politicians, Charles and his family are not required to declare gifts from billionaires or business associates.

Responding to the Observer story today, Republic's Graham Smith said:

"If politicians are being lambasted for failing to declare gifts, the same should apply to the royals."

"It is vital that the public knows about any possible conflicts of interest or attempts to curry favour with royals, as they have direct access to the highest levels of government. And we need to know if official gifts are being handed over to the state or surreptitiously kept for personal use."

"Charles and senior royals have access to government papers, can have secretive meetings with ministers and the prime minister and they have leverage to pressure government to do favours for them and their friends. So it’s vital we know what gifts they’re receiving."

"The royals have form when it comes to blurring the lines between what’s theirs to keep and what’s an official gift. So full disclosure is needed on what’s been received and where those gifts are now."

"There’s usually a good reason why billionaires and Saudi businessmen give gifts, because something is expected in return. So we need full disclosure, not just of royal gifts but also royal lobbying."

"If we demand high standards from politicians, we must demand those same standards from the royals."

The Observer article is at https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/oct/12/buckingham-palace-published-list-official-gifts-royal-family-king-charles