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Following the claims that he pledged to secure an honour for a rich Saudi donor, Mr. Fawcett, one of Prince Charles’ closest aides, stepped down from his role as investigation was launched into the Prince’s Foundation.
Michael Fawcett Temporarily Leaves His Post Amidst Rumors Of Foul Play
Michael Fawcett, a former assistant valet to the Prince, temporarily stepped down as the chief executive of the Prince’s Foundation, per a report published by the charity on Saturday.
The Sunday Times and Mail on Sunday broke the news that Mr. Fawcett had attempted to provide an honour for businessman Mahfouz Marei Mubarak bin Mahfouz.
The royal correspondent for Sky News, Rhiannon Mills, shared that a palace source told her that Prince Charles has “been made aware” of the investigation into the Prince’s Foundation.
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“Clarence House are not commenting and say this is a matter for the Prince’s Foundation who are looking into what happened,” Mills said. “Following other newspaper reports in the past few weeks about fundraising practices they had already launched an investigation – that has now been widened.”
“I understand from a palace source that the Prince of Wales ‘has been made aware’ of the investigation,” she continued.
“The source also said that Michael Fawcett ‘offered to step down’ while the matter is being looked into. They were also keen to stress that Michael Fawcett no longer works directly for the prince, stressing that he was a former valet and now runs the charity.”
Mr. Mahfouz, 51, received a CBE by Charles in a private ceremony at Buckingham Palace in 2016, The Sunday Times wrote, after he paid “tens of thousands of pounds to fixers with links to the prince who had told him they could secure the honour”.
The outlet quoted leaked correspondence between William Bortrick, the owner of Burke’s Peerage and one of Mr Mahfouz’s advisers, convincing the colleagues in 2014 that once the Saudi businessman had “Hon OBE… then more money will flow”.
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The OBE, he said, was “promised” to Mr Mahfouz “to get the £1.5m he paid for Dumfries (House) and (The Castle of) Mey”.
He continued: “MF (Michael Fawcett) needs to keep to his side of the bargain and sort out the Hon OBE immediately – then assist with citizenship.”
The Sunday Times Reported That Mr. Fawcett Later Helped To Bump Up The Honour From An OBE To A CBE.
A spokesperson for the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) explained: “All nominations for Honorary Awards are subject to the same rigorous scrutiny and probity checks to assess the merits of each case. This process is followed in all cases.”
Douglas Connell, chair of the Prince’s Foundation, said that Mr. Fawcett has willingly stepped down and that the Foundation accepted the offer. He further added: “Michael fully supports the ongoing investigation and has confirmed that he will assist the investigation in every way.”
In the meantime, it is understood that Emily Cherrington, chief operating officer for the Foundation, will be taking over – and that the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) has been informed as The Prince’s Foundation is registered in Scotland.
But some are calling for more investigation to be done concerning the honours Mr. Fawcett reportedly hands out.
Mr. Baker Calls For Prince Charles To Be Investigated
Former Liberal democrat MP Norman Baker told Sky News that he wants the Metropolitan Police to be involved in the investigations regarding the allegations of cash for favours.
Mr. Baker wrote in The Mail: “It is the Prince of Wales, not Michael Fawcett, who has to answer questions now. His royal fingerprints are all over this.”
“The monarchy has been seriously damaged by the dodgy activities of the boorish Prince Andrew and by the self- obsessed bleatings of Harry and Meghan.”
He added: “The Queen continues to command respect, but she will not go on forever. This morning, many will be asking themselves how Prince Charles can square such behaviour with the momentous responsibilities he is due to inherit one day.”
The Metropolitan Police later released a statement, saying, “We are aware of media reports and await further contact in relation to this matter.”
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