tantrums and tiaras

Prince Andrew left furious after Queen rejects his calls for daughters Eugenie and Beatrice to be funded by the taxpayer

In a letter to the Queen, Andrew demanded the Princesses be housed in Kensington Palace - claiming they should be on a par with their cousins William and Harry

Emily Andrews

Published: 1:33, 24 Oct 2016
Updated: 16:44, 26 Jun 2018

A DEMAND by the Duke of York for his daughters to be funded by the taxpayer has been rejected by the Queen.

Furious Andrew believes Princess Beatrice, 28, and Eugenie, 26, should be on a par with their cousins William, Kate and Harry.

Prince Andrew has demanded daughters Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice receive full Royal statusCredit: Max Mumby

But Prince Charles is refusing to comply with the demands, saying Royals need to give value for moneyCredit: PA:Press Association

But a personal request to his mother was thrown out amid simmering tension between the Duke and his brother Charles over the girls’ public roles.

A royal source said: “Andrew has always wanted his daughters to be full-time royals.

“He sees it as a slight on him and them if they are not.

“But Charles calls the shots and he wants the royal family giving value for money.”

Prince Andrew wrote a letter to the Queen calling for equal status for Beatrice and EugenieCredit: Getty Images

Prince Andrew wants Eugenie and Beatrice to have the same status as their cousins Prince Harry and Prince William, and wife KateCredit: Rex Features

Eugenie currently works for a London art gallery while Beatrice has been jobless since July.

In his letter to the Queen, Andrew, 56, also demanded they get new pads at Kensington Palace, instead of their “small” shared flat at St James’s Palace.

Currently Princess Eugenie works for a London art gallery, while and Princess Beatrice is unemployedCredit: Reuters

Andrew also wants the girls to be given a flat in Kensington PalaceCredit: Alamy

A source said: “His private secretary originally drafted a letter and couched it in very reasonable terms.

“But the Duke did not think it made his case strongly enough so tore it up and put pen to paper himself.

“He believes his daughters are being overshadowed by William, Kate and Harry and it will get worse as Prince George and Princess Charlotte get older.

“He fears that they will be totally sidelined when the Queen dies.”

Prince Andrew is reportedly concerned his daughters will be more and more overshadowed as Prince George and Princess Charlotte grow upCredit: PA:Press Association

His brother Charles, 67, has made it clear he wants a “pared-back” monarchy with William, Kate and Harry centre-stage at major royal events.

This was first seen in 2012 at the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, when only the Queen, Charles, Camilla, William, Harry and Kate appeared on the Palace balcony.

"The Magnificent Seven", minus Prince Philip who was ill, on the Royal balcony in 2012Credit: Getty Images

Andrew was also left furious the year before when his daughters were stripped of their 24-hour police protection due to the £500,000 annual cost.

Full-time royals, such as the Queen, Philip and Princess Anne are supported by the Sovereign Grant — money provided annually by the Government.

Prince Anne is another full-time royal supported by the taxpayerCredit: PA:Press Association

Charles, William, Kate and Harry are also funded by the Duchy of Cornwall — income set aside for the heir to the throne which would otherwise go to the public purse.

Graham Smith, of pressure group Republic, said last night: “At a time of serious economic uncertainty the last thing we need is a grasping, greedy royal demanding more of our cash.”

A spokeswoman for Buckingham Palace refused to comment.

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