Could there be trouble ahead between the UK’s heir to the throne Prince Charles and his brother, Prince Andrew? It certainly looks like it…

Prince Andrew, as the UK's special representative for international trade and investment, is to host a gala lunch on 5 February at Buckingham Palace for representatives of British companies involved in the nuclear energy industry. However, critics say that nuclear energy represents a 'startlingly fraught arena for a member of the British royal family to enter.' Kate Hudson, chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), said the event should be cancelled, adding, "It's outrageous that Prince Andrew and the Palace are being used to promote nuclear power. This has always been a contentious political issue and is likely to become more so as the government's plans move forward." Andrew's big brother, Prince Charles, has not commented on the lunch. He recently appointed Benet Northcote as his deputy private secretary, fresh from a role as chief policy advisor to Greenpeace where he directed campaigns against, among other things, nuclear energy.

Strangely, Prince Andrew doesn’t have the event in his special representative for international trade and investment diary. We wonder why. It would certainly be in keeping with the levels of secrecy and cover-up (not to mention embarrassment) we’ve come to expect from the nuclear industry.