King's 'slimmed down' monarchy 'so thin there aren’t enough royals to go around'

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King Charles was keen for a slimmed down royal family but now numbers are quite short (Image: PA)
King Charles was keen for a slimmed down royal family but now numbers are quite short (Image: PA)

King Charles' slimmed down working royal pool is now threadbare and there aren't enough to fulfil all the duties, it has been claimed.

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie are reportedly being lined up for several engagements in the coming months as part of a two-year tour of the Commonwealth. Sources say emergency meetings have been held and it's been decided "younger blood" is needed to reach out to reach a broader age range of supporters, with Prince William and Princess Kate the only 'senior' royals under 50.

The York sisters - daughters of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson - have been earmarked to help fill the gap. They are not official working royals but have carried out duties for the monarchy before. The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh are approaching 60. If those two and the Waleses are removed from the equation, the average age of the remaining royals is 77 years of age.

King's 'slimmed down' monarchy 'so thin there aren’t enough royals to go around' qeithidzziqxinvPrincesses Beatrice and Eugenie have been lined up as new working royals, it is claimed

A source OK!: "Emergency meetings have been held to come up with a solution to fulfil the growing number of royal engagements both here in the UK and abroad. There needs to be some younger blood to reach the younger generation and the only candidates available are Beatrice and Eugenie."

"It will be a case of increasing those responsibilities as opposed to making them into full-time working royals," the source added. Upon presenting his slimmed down monarchy in an official portrait of the Royal Family at the Coronation earlier this year, King Charles was keen to convey a sense of unity following the loss of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as working royals in 2020.

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The source went on to say: "The Duke of Kent and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester aren't going to fly off to Australia to represent the royals abroad. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief if they manage to make it to the next county, let alone another country." Among the Commonwealth visits pencilled in for next year, one is expected to Australia which would tie into King Charles' appearance at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa. Other Commonwealth engagements are being scheduled.

King's 'slimmed down' monarchy 'so thin there aren’t enough royals to go around'William and Kate are the only working royals under 50 (Zak Hussein / SplashNews.com)

And despite mounting pressure from the King to take up a more active role in promoting the Royal Family abroad, the Prince and Princess of Wales have decided to put their children before duty and scale back on the number of engagements they undertake. "The King and Queen will lead the tour of the Commonwealth with Edward and Sophie as supports," the source said.

"William and Kate will be taking part but with reduced roles to account for the children. They will take on most of their work during the children's school holidays. This leaves a gap in the UK that needs to be filled. That's where Eugenie and Beatrice come in."

* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]

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