It is “fine” for Prince Charles to have accepted a suitcase containing €1m in cash from a controversial Qatari politician, a Cabinet minister says.
Brandon Lewis backed the heir to the throne amid a gathering row over the money he accepted the former prime minister of the Middle East state.
However, the Northern Ireland secretary avoided a question about whether the Prince of Wales’ actions threw “his judgement” into doubt – arguing it was not “appropriate” for a government minister to answer.
The Sunday Times revealed that the €1m was one of three lots of cash, totalling €3m, which Prince Charles personally received from Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani.
Clarence House said the money was “passed immediately to one of the prince’s charities who carried out the appropriate governance and assured us that all the correct processes were followed”.
Asked if the prince should have accepted the cash, Mr Lewis said he was “confident” from his dealing with the Palace that it “will have gone through proper due process”.
“As long as it’s following the law and it goes through proper due process. I think that’s fine,” he told the BBC’s Sunday Morning programme.
more follows
