The Duchess also responded to a request from the Government’s trade body UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) to fly the flag for British business during the Olympics, attending a reception last week at the Royal Academy with the Prime Minister for the UK’s creative industries, to support the Government’s GREAT campaign.
The £25 million campaign to promote Britain’s economic potential abroad on the back of both the Diamond Jubilee and Olympic Games was at the heart of Prince Harry’s recent tour to the Caribbean and Brazil, which was hailed as a diplomatic and commercial triumph.
During the Prince’s tour of Rio-de-Janeiro and São Paulo, cities where the economy is booming, Jeremy Hunt, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media, the Olympics and Sport, described Prince Harry’s effect on the international stage as “electrifying”.
“Prince Harry has the impact of 1,000 politicians,” said Mr Hunt. “He is becoming an extraordinary phenomenon. He has not been on top of our list before as an ambassador, but seeing the electrifying effect he’s had here…shows just how he has taken to the role.”
The Government is believed to be keen to employ the Prince more regularly on the international stage to boost British trade and maintain good diplomatic relations throughout the Commonwealth.
Royal aides said that the Prince will undertake further overseas tours but that his military career as an Apache helicopter pilot with the Army Air Corps remained his priority.
A royal aide said: “Prince Harry’s focus is still very much his military career, so he will be limited in what he can do while his full-time job is the army.
“But he will undertake other tours in the future on behalf of the British Government and his charities.”
A Government spokesman said: “The young Royals are fantastic ambassadors for Britain and for British business, helping to raise the UK’s profile across the world. We are incredibly grateful to them for their support.”
The Duke and Duchess began their drive to boost British business last year during their visit to California, where they attended an event organised by UKTI in support of British technology investments and the development of east London’s “Tech City” into a world-leading area for technology and software design.
They were also honorary guests at a gala dinner for BAFTA, of which the Prince is patron, to promote the British film industry.
The increase in the Duke and Duchess and Prince Harry’s presence as international trade envoys has coincided with the Duke of York’s decision to give up his title of Special Representative for Trade and Investment, a role which saw him attract criticism following disclosures about his friendships with the Gaddafi family and Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender.
The Queen is also understood to be keen to present a new “core” unit of the Royal family, as seen by the pared-down version of the monarchy that accompanied the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh on the Buckingham Palace balcony during the Diamond Jubilee celebrations, comprising the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.
