ROBERT HARDMAN: Princes Harry and Andrew sidelined by King’s new deputising rule

No one is calling it a demotion, though it will undoubtedly feel like that to the Dukes of Sussex and York.

The King has now confirmed that both of them can be sidelined by the Princess Royal and the Earl of Wessex when it comes to handling affairs of state in his absence.

In a message to Parliament yesterday, delivered by the Lord Chamberlain, Lord Parker, the King declared that he would be ‘most content’ for Parliament to amend the rules and include his sister and younger brother in the list of those eligible to serve as Counsellors of State.

These are the limited pool of Royal Family replacements who may deputise when the monarch is unavailable for whatever reason.

Both the Duke of Sussex and the Duke of York will be sidelined by the Princess Royal and the Earl of Wessex when it comes to handling affairs of state in the King’s absence

Under the Regency Acts of 1937 and 1953, they consist of the Sovereign’s consort plus the first four adults in the line of succession – currently the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Sussex, the Duke of York and Princess Beatrice.

There must also be at least two of them present to approve any legislation or state business.

The new plan, first revealed by the Daily Mail last month, involves adding the names of the Princess Royal and the Earl of Wessex to the current roster. This is much simpler than attempting a major overhaul of the existing Acts, let alone tinkering with the line of succession.

It means that the Duke of Sussex, the Duke of York and Princess Beatrice – who do not undertake royal duties – will not be explicitly excluded from anything. However, they no longer need to be included because the King can call upon others who all happen to be officially involved in public life.

The King’s message yesterday was a short one: ‘To ensure continued efficiency of public business when I am unavailable such as while I am undertaking official duties overseas, I confirm that I would be most content, should Parliament see fit, for the number of people who may be called upon to act as Counsellors of State… to include my sister and brother, The Princess Royal and The Earl of Wessex and Forfar, both of whom have previously undertaken this role.’

The King declared that he would be ‘most content’ for Parliament to amend the rules and include his sister and younger brother in the list of those eligible to serve as Counsellors of State

The new plan, first revealed by the Daily Mail last month, involves adding the names of the Princess Royal and the Earl of Wessex to the current roster

The last line was a reminder that the Princess Royal was previously on the list for more than three decades, from the day she turned 21 in 1971 until she was supplanted on Prince William’s 21st birthday in 2003.

The Earl of Wessex replaced Princess Margaret in 1985, when he became 21, and stayed on the list until Prince Harry, in turn, replaced him in 2005. In other words, these newcomers are old hands.

The plan – which is still a matter for Parliament – was in the offing earlier this year with the approval of the late Queen.

One royal adviser explained it to me as a ‘Post-It note’ on the existing legislation, similar to the one-off amendment made in 1953.

With the death of King George VI, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother automatically ceased to be a Counsellor State as she was no longer Consort. However, the Home Secretary at the time, Sir David Maxwell-Fyfe, argued that, since the new Queen was embarking on major world tours, it would ‘be most unfortunate that the Queen Mother’s long experience and wisdom should not be available’. Given that the King and the Queen Consort will soon be embarking on major overseas tours of their own, the matter needed sorting out.

It is not a purely hypothetical issue.

In 1974, the Queen was in Australia when urgent royal approvals were required to declare a state of emergency and dissolve Parliament. That duty fell to Princess Margaret and the Queen Mother. The latter fulfilled the same role, with the Prince of Wales, in 1979 during the ‘winter of discontent’.

She relished her reappointment to the role. As she explained to one aide at the time: ‘Having been one [before], it seems so dull to be relegated to the ‘no earthly use’ class.’