In an interview on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuensberg programme, Cameron said he never felt that Charles – whose “black spider memos” to ministers were released after a 10-year court battle – had meddled in politics. “I never felt that he tried to unduly influence me in any way,” the former prime minister said. “I think the heir to the throne has a perfect right to be interested in issues like the environment, wildlife conservation, his interest in the built environment. Many of the causes he took up back in the 60s and 70s might have seemed rather fringe, but he chose his subject brilliantly, becoming an expert on things like climate change and the environment long before the politicians. “I think it’s absolutely right that the crown prince should be able to discuss things with politicians. Why not? I don’t think there should be any public concern about this and my view is that the letters should have remained private.” In memos between Charles and senior government ministers sent in 2004 and 2005 and released in 2015, Charles advocated for issues such as planning new hospitals and a European Union directive restricting the use of alternative herbal medicines. Cameron revealed that Charles practiced having audiences with him as prime minister while he was Prince of Wales in order to be ready to ascend the throne. “I had audiences with Prince Charles when Queen Elizabeth II was on the throne because she wanted to start thinking about how to conduct those audiences,” he said. “From what I’ve seen he’s going to be brilliant at this job. Great at listening, smart at asking questions, giving sage advice and sage advice. This was probably the greatest apprenticeship in history.” Cameron also said Boris Johnson was “welcomed as the youngest member of the club” of former prime ministers when he and his predecessors met at the accession council on Saturday. “It’s the club that nobody wants to join and you can never leave,” he said. Cameron was interviewed on the program along with two other former prime ministers, Theresa May and Gordon Brown. Brown said he believed Charles would change the monarchy. “I think what Prince Charles has already indicated is that the monarchy will be smaller. It will be more like a Scandinavian monarchy in the future, but not in a bad way – more informal,” he said. “He stopped on his way into Buckingham Palace and talked to people in the crowd and that was a signal he was sending that he wanted people to feel he was approachable.” May also predicted that the monarchy would begin to change under Charles. “They are steadily developing a different approach, a different way of doing things over time and I’m sure King Charles will continue to do that going forward,” she said. “Of course, she is a different person and she may want to change things in some ways, but I think, critically, as the Queen has done, any change in the way things are done would be done gradually and very carefully.” Cameron recalled having to apologize to the Queen after a broadcast microphone picked him up saying he had “crossed the line” when she was told about the result of the 2014 Scottish referendum. “It was a very upfront and full apology made very quickly at the beginning of an audience. I think that’s all I have to say,” he said. “I’ve been more careful than ever since when cameras and microphones are around and I’ve learned my lesson.” Asked if the Queen had told him, Cameron replied: “Obviously everything that was said in those meetings is completely private.”
