Prince Harry and Prince Andrew will never be called upon to act as substitutes for King Charles following provisions made by Buckingham Palace.
A law dating back to 1937 provides that the sovereign’s spouse and the next four people in the line of succession to the throne aged over 21, no matter their position within the Firm, can be chosen to act as Counsellors of State.
In this role, two counsellors appointed by the monarch through letters patent are asked to step in to carry out together most of his official duties – including attending Privy Council meetings and signing routine documents – whenever the sovereign is temporarily absent, be that due to an illness or a trip abroad.
In accordance with the line of succession, the role of Counsellor can currently be assigned to Prince William, Prince Harry, Prince Andrew and Princess Beatrice. As the wife of King Charles, Queen Camilla can also be chosen.
Just weeks into his reign, however, the monarch made sure the Duke of Sussex, Duke of York and Princess Beatrice would never be required to step in for him.
Through the Counsellors of State Act 2022, the King added both Princess Anne and Prince Edward to the pool of family members from which he can choose as temporary substitutes.
The law doesn’t bar the potential Counsellors who are also non-working royals from stepping in for the King – but ends up effectively banning from the role them nevertheless.
During the second reading of the bill in the House of Lords on November 21 2022, Lord True made a statement that, despite going mostly unnoticed, sealed the fate of Andrew, Beatrice and Harry.
Lord True said at the time that the royal household had confirmed that “in practice working members of the Royal Family will be called on to act as Counsellors of State.”
Diaries, he added, “will be arranged to make this practicable”, suggesting Prince William, Princess Anne, Prince Edward and Queen Camilla will be placed in a position allowing them to step in for the King without requiring the support of non-working royals.
The Princess Royal and Duke of Edinburgh will retain their positions as possible Counsellors for life. On the other hand, Harry, Andrew and Beatrice are destined to be replaced by Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis after they each turn 21, in accordance with the line of succession.
