Ngozi Fulani attends reception at Buckingham Palace

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Prince William has “said enough” about the scandal involving his godmother, Lady Susan Hussey, and a charity leader, according to an author and commentator. Royal Holloway University Professor Pauline Maclaran believes the Prince would risk overshadowing the Earthshot Prize and the real purpose of his and the Princess of Wales’ trip to Boston if he further spoke about the race row sparked earlier this week.

Asked whether she believed the heir to the throne should, after the statement released yesterday by Kensington Palace, further distance himself from Lady Susan, Professor MacLaran, co-author of ‘Royal Fever: The British Monarchy in Consumer Culture’, told Express.co.uk: “I think he’s said enough for the moment in relation to the specific incident and he will be reluctant to let it overshadow their visit and the Earthshot project which is likely to happen if he makes a further statement. Less is probably more in this regard.”

Kate and Prince William are visiting Boston for three days this week to mark the end of the second year of the Earthshot Prize – the decade-long initiative launched by the Prince of Wales to spotlight and help scale solutions to the planet’s five most pressing issues.

While in Boston, the pair will visit a number of organisations focused on fighting climate change, helping vulnerable people and the city’s approach to early childhood development.

Their trip will culminate in the second award ceremony of the Earthshot Prize, set to be attended by an array of celebrities including actor Rami Malek and singer Ellie Goulding.

Hours before Kate and William’s first engagement in Boston, however, the attention was grabbed by Buckingham Palace as it released a statement in the wake of allegations made by charity leader Ngozi Fulani, one of the attendees of Queen Camilla’s reception focused on domestic abuse on Tuesday.

Ms Fulani, who runs the organisation Sistah Space in support of African and Caribbean heritage women affected by abuse, took to Twitter on Wednesday morning to say a member of the Royal Household she identified as “Lady SH” had approached her at the beginning of the event at Buckingham Palace and asked multiple questions about her provenance and heritage.

A few hours later, a Palace spokesman said: “We take this incident extremely seriously and have investigated immediately to establish the full details. In this instance, unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments have been made.

“We have reached out to Ngozi Fulani on this matter, and are inviting her to discuss all elements of her experience in person if she wishes.

“In the meantime, the individual concerned would like to express her profound apologies for the hurt caused and has stepped aside from her honorary role with immediate effect.

“All members of the Household are being reminded of the diversity and inclusivity policies which they are required to uphold at all times.”

Prince William further addressed the issue concerning Lady Susan, who was one of Queen Elizabeth II’s ladies-in-waiting and has been a Royal Household member for decades.

Prior to the Prince and Princess of Wales’s first engagement in Boston, a Kensington Palace spokesperson said: “This is a matter for Buckingham Palace, but as the Prince of Wales’ spokesperson I appreciate you’re all here and that you’ll want to ask about it. So let me address this head on.

“I was really disappointed to hear about the guest’s experience at Buckingham Palace last night. Obviously, I wasn’t there, but racism has no place in our society.

“The comments were unacceptable, and it is right that the individual has stepped aside with immediate effect.”

The fact that both Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace were quick to react to Ms Fulani’s experience will play in favour of the success of the royal trip to Boston, Professor MacLaran believes.

She said: “I think this controversy could certainly provide a distraction from Kate and William’s visit to Boston.

“However, William reacted immediately with a statement distancing himself and saying racism has no place in society. The palace has also reacted unusually quickly to make it clear that Lady Hussey has now stood down from her role, as well as issuing formal apologies.

“So there is a major attempt to keep this scandal contained.

“The question that we are left with is why on earth was an elderly member of the Royal Household allowed loose at this event without sufficient briefing and unconscious bias training to ensure such things don’t happen.

“Overall, the fact that William has been quick to distance himself even though she is his godmother will very much be in his favour and I think the strong approval ratings of William and Kate will rise above this latest scandal.”

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