The King has campaigned on environmental issues for five decades, and the former prince appears to have been trying to emulate his brother’s work.
Leaked emails showed that Mr Mountbatten-Windsor asked aides to put together a three-year business plan in March 2019 and sought approval for using “Royal” from the Cabinet Office.
Earlier that year, the former Duke of York hosted a lunch with dozens of business leaders at Buckingham Palace, and a further meeting was planned at Windsor that July, but it is unclear whether it ever took place.
The emails also showed how Libby Ferguson, who managed the former prince’s firm Urramoor Limited, wrote to several business people involved in The Royal Conservancy in March 2019, saying that “the Duke has asked us to get the business plan” to Amanda Thirsk, Mr Mountbatten-Windsor’s then private secretary.
Ms Ferguson proposed a meeting the following week and said she had a “good call with the Duke on Friday evening” about the plans.
Archie Ruggles-Brise, an 11th-generation landowner from Essex who was tasked with leading the project, wrote back attaching the business plan, which was later sent to Ms Thirsk for approval and included a budget for three years.
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