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UK prince accused of 'hypocrisy'
LONDON, England -- The Prince of Wales was accused of "hypocrisy" after making a passionate buy-British appeal just hours after signing a deal with German car firm Audi. Prince Charles appealed for British schools, hospitals and the Army to buy British in an effort to support local farming, but it emerged that he had signed a £100,000 deal to replace his Vauxhall Omega car, produced in Britain, for a German Audi. Labour politician Tom Watson accused the prince of being guilty of "hypocrisy" in an article in Britain's tabloid the Sunday Mirror. "Charles should put his money where his mouth is when it comes to the British car industry," Watson said. "This is hypocrisy from the heir to the throne who appears not to care about workers in his own country." Labour left-winger and anti-royalist Paul Flynn suggested the deal highlighted Prince Charles' distorted priorities. The prince had not spoken out in support of the British steel industry when it faced cutbacks, the MP told the UK's news wire agency, The Press Association. But he spoke out on behalf of "millionaire farmers" like himself, Flynn added. In an article for this week's Farmers' Weekly, Charles writes: "Just imagine the amount of food purchased by our armed forces, local government, schools and universities. What an impact it would make on the viability of the British farmer if each was to buy British, and preferably, buy local." An Audi spokesman told PA News he thought the "open-ended" lease deal, worth around £100,000, involved four cars. "It is an honour to be chosen to supply cars in that way," the spokesman said. A St James's Palace spokeswoman said she was only aware of the one car bought to replace a Vauxhall Omega the prince had driven which were no longer produced. The prince's spokeswoman defended his decision to buy a German car. She said: "Vauxhall have decided to stop making Omegas so he has had to pick another car and has chosen Audi. "Audi was the car that met the required specification." She said the decision did not contradict his article in Farmers' Weekly because "he was talking about food, not cars." "He was saying that, where possible, people should buy British food. He was talking about the British farming industry and trying to help the British farmer." Asked about the discrepancy over the number of cars Audi said it was supplying, the spokeswoman said it was possible that members of royal staff could pick Audis if they arranged private leases through the palace, but these would be paid for by the staff and were not for official business. She had no knowledge of anyone actually choosing an Audi in this way.
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