Meghan and Harry’s daughter Lilibet ‘not included’ in royal line of succession
Seven weeks after she was born, the Royal Family still hasn’t updated its public succession list to reflect Lilibet’s position.
Harry and Meghan’s daughter became eight in line to the British throne when she was born on June 4.
As daughter of the Duke of Sussex, she slots into the list immediately after her brother Archie and one before Prince Andrew.
But 51 days after her birth, Buckingham Palace hasn’t got round to reflecting that on its own website.
The list is the closest thing the UK has to an ‘official’ line of succession as a formal order isn’t enshrined in law under the country’s ad hoc constitutional arrangements.
Her absence from the site hasn’t escaped the attention of ITV’s royal editor Chris Ship.
He told the broadcaster’s Royal Rota podcast on Friday: ‘You have got to ask what has taken them so long.
‘All they have got to do is hit the paragraph button and put in a different number.
‘They must have done it before. They did it for Archie. Clearly they did it for Louis when he was born.
‘And they have done it for some of the other children like August that have been born as well.
‘So where’s Lilibet? I can forgive them a week or two but a month?
‘Is this them being a little bit petulant? Is it them saying, “We will get around to it when ready?”
‘It does feel like to me, maybe, they are making a point.’
Archived versions of the webpage reveal palace staff were far quicker off the line when William and Kate’s youngest child was born, The Sun reports.
Prince Louis’ name was added to the list on or around May 5, no more than 12 days after he was born.
Harry and Meghan’s first son Archie was included pretty quickly, 15 days after he was born, and the same information reveals the Royal Family’s website administrator may just be a bit slow off the mark.
August Brooksbank, the son of Princess Eugenie and 11th in line to the throne, was added to the list no earlier than April 10, 60 days after he was born.
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