After a watchdog announced it was looking into payments from a contentious Tory donor who spent £1.7 million supporting the future king’s failing eco-village project, Prince Charles was faced with new questions about his charity yesterday.
Following a series of covert transactions in which the Prince of Wales accepted millions of pounds in gifts for Lord Brownlow’s charity, the two men were personally honored at Buckingham Palace in 2018.
When Charles had trouble selling houses in Knockroon in East Ayrshire, the peer, who had previously worked as a constable before becoming wealthy in the finance industry, stepped in.
The £271 million-plus Lord Brownlow also celebrated his 50th birthday at Dumfries House, Charles’ Scottish rural seat from the 18th century.
Controversy is nothing new to the 58-year-old. After the then-fiancée of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Carrie Symonds, allegedly complained to the ‘John Lewis furniture horror’ left by Theresa May, it was revealed last year that he helped fund work at No. 11 Downing Street.
The Sunday Times revealed yesterday that the charity watchdog is looking into the Knockroon dealings between his Havisham investment business and a division of The Prince’s Foundation.
According to the newspaper, Charles became close to Lord Brownlow after disobeying one of his most senior courtiers’ recommendations.
Following the purchase of Dumfries House for £45 million using a £20 million loan obtained through the foundation six years earlier, he named the peer as a trustee of The Prince’s Foundation, which oversees the property.
As part of the deal, he also bought Knockroon, a nearby acreage where Charles intended to build eco-housing to pay off the Dumfries debt.
However, the project was a failure; just 31 of the 770 dwellings were built, and the project’s value was reduced from £15 million to £700,000.
The Prince’s Foundation’s subsidiary was selling properties when Lord Brownlow’s Havisham investment business stepped in to purchase them. According to official records, he spent £1.7 million buying 11 houses between 2012 and 2017.
To prove that the proceeds were going to someone who already had connections to the organization, the sales were not listed as “related party transactions.”
In 2018, Lord Brownlow was appointed a Commander of the Victorian Order (CVO) not long after completing the acquisition of the properties and resigning as a trustee.
The recognition is given for individual services to the Royal Family.
The Havisham investment group’s decision to purchase the Knockroon estates is under investigation, according to the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator.
‘Lord Brownlow was appointed CVO in honour of his contribution as chair,’ a Prince’s Foundation spokeswoman said.
An official from Clarence House stated: “Chairpersons of charities closely linked to the Royal Family are frequently awarded to the Royal Victorian Order to recognize their public service.”