Prince Charles persuaded Margaret Thatcher to give £3.5m to landowners

Prince Charles reportedly persuaded the then Prime Minister of the Great Britain Margaret Thatcher to give £3.5 million of taxpayers’ money to help the landowners rocked by the storm of 1987.

According to Daily Mail, the government papers have been unearthed after a 17-month Freedom of Information Battle which revealed that the Prince of Wales lobbied Thatcher to help landowners ‘replant’ trees.

The outlet reported that an unidentified civil servant referred to ‘Government help for tree planting following last Autumn’s storm’ in a memo to the Prime Minister.

“The Prince raised with you the possibility of extra help for landowners to assist in replanting. As a result of his talk with you, you took up the matter with the Secretary of State for the Environment and the Minister of Agriculture. 

"As a result, they announced on June 7 a £3.5 million scheme over five years,” it read.

Another document revealed: “Meeting with the Prince of Wales’ states: ‘As a result of your intervention following your last meeting with the Prince, MAFF [the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food] have announced further help.”