Royal news live: Prince Andrew ‘shoving two fingers up at King Charles’ over £30m Royal Lodge standoff

Prince William met with young conservationists as he took in the views of Cape Town’s famous Table Mountain on the second day of his visit to South Africa.

The Prince of Wales strode up Signal Hill and met rangers and volunteer conservationists as he learned about the rare and endangered plants that are part of the area’s biodiversity.

The hilltop gives panoramic views of Cape Town, with Table Mountain as a dramatic backdrop, and the prince posed for a picture at a spot set up for tourists.

The future king began a four-day visit to Cape Town on Monday and is taking part in a series of events shining a light on young African climate activists, the fight against the illegal wildlife trade, and promoting his Earthshot Prize awards ceremony.

Prince William is currently meeting the President of South Africa on his second day of his visit to the country.

The prince was pictured shaking hands with Cyril Ramaphosa at his Official Residence in Cape Town on Tuesday.

William’s audience with Mr Ramaphosa has been described as a “follow-up” to the state visit made to the UK by the president in 2022.

The Prince of Wales will have a high-level meeting with South Africa’s president and Foreign Secretary David Lammy as he continues his visit to the Commonwealth nation.

William’s audience with Cyril Ramaphosa has been described as a “follow-up” to the state visit made to the UK by Mr Ramaphosa in 2022.

The prince and the president will sit down for talks and be joined by Mr Lammy, who is in the country for a meeting with his South African counterpart Ronald Lamola.

Antony Phillipson, Britain’s high commissioner to South Africa, said about the royal visit: “I would just highlight that we are actually delighted to have the Prince of Wales here this week for Earthshot week, and we will be taking the opportunity of doing some bilateral events with him, and for him.”

He added: “We very much see this as a follow-up to the state visit… which we continue to see here as a very historic moment between the UK and South Africa.”

Tensions are continuing to build between Prince Andrew and King Charles over the disgraced duke’s residence at his 31-bedroom Windsor mansion.

Royal commentators have suggested Andrew is standing firm on his plans to remain in the £3mn Royal Lodge, despite his brother making it increasingly difficult for him to live there and shocking images showing the house in a state of disrepair.

Royal author Christopher Wilson believes the duke is “digging his toes in” and “shoving up two fingers at” Charles as he continues to live at the former home of the late Queen Mother and King George VI.

“It’s dishonouring [the Queen Mother’s] memory. It’s shoving up two fingers at King Charles,” he told The Sun. “The state of his mind is reflected in the state of his home. It is falling all around him. He doesn’t care anymore.”

In her new documentary, Camilla is seen visiting a refuge and speaking candidly with domestic abuse survivors about their deeply personal experiences.

Earlier this year, Camilla backed The Independent’s Brick by Brick campaign to build two new refuges for women fleeing abuse. Thanks to generous donations from readers the initial £300,000 target has recently been reached, with more than £500,000 of donations pouring in so far and plans are already underway for the building of a second home.

Speaking about the importance of refuges in the documentary Camilla says: “You flee and you arrive at this haven. Room of their own, a door they can lock. And as time goes by, they start having their confidence restored and start their life anew.

“These refuges are literally life savers. Without these refuges, where would they go?”

The monarch and Prince William have sparked uproar after it was revealed they are benefiting from rental deals with public services – including the armed forces and state schools – on their private estates, the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall.

The two estates earned the royals upwards of £50mn in the last financial year, with both estates being exempt from paying corporation tax or capital gains tax.

Charles has been asked to reconsider an £11.4m deal struck by the Duchy of Lancaster last year to store a fleet of electric ambulances, owned by Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Trust in London, in one of the estate’s warehouses for 15 years.

King Charles has instructed the royal purse-keeper to “sever” Prince Andrew’s annual £1 million allowance, according to royal writer Robert Hardman in a new book serialised by the Daily Mail.

The keeper of the privy purse was “instructed to sever [Andrew’s] living allowance” after the Duke of York refused to move out of his 30-room mansion the Royal Lodge into the smaller, nearby Frogmore Cottage.

“’The duke is no longer a financial burden on the King,’ confirms one familiar with the situation,” Mr Hardman writes.

“’He claims to have found other sources of income related to his contacts in international trade, sufficient to cover all his costs – which would be a welcome outcome for all parties if that turns out to be the case.

“’But as to whether this funding can be relied upon in the long term is another matter.’”

The view of the monarchy in the UK remains overwhelmingly positive, writes Alan Rusbridger. But the public deserve full transparency on the family’s staggering wealth:

However in both cases the colonial-era titles could be retained for those who wanted them.