Queen Elizabeth II owns all the swans in the River Thames and all the sturgeons, whales and dolphins in British waters. She can drive without a license, travel without a passport and doesn’t have to pay tax (though she does).
But it was something more serious that prompted Dr John Kirkhope to force the release of secret papers that reveals the extent of the Queen and Prince Charles’ power of veto over legislation.
Kirkhope is a Notary Public, a visiting research fellow at Plymouth University, and author of the 2013 book An Introduction to the Laws of the Duchy of Cornwall, The Scilly Isles and Devon. He speaks to Kim Hill about how he fought a freedom of information case to access papers showing the extent of the secretive power of veto over laws in the UK.
