New Delhi:
The Queen is going to hand over a substantial part of her public duties to Prince William to help him prepare for the day when he becomes King.
This according to a confidential document obtained by The Mail. The disclosures come despite months of denials from the Palace that the Queen was planning to step back from her official work in favour of her 27-year-old grandson.
Secret papers reveal that plans to ease the strain on the 83-year-old monarch and her 88-year-old husband, Prince Philip, are at an advanced stage.
The move will fuel rumours that the Queen believes William, rather than her son Charles, represents the best long-term interests of the monarchy.
The information is contained in a briefing note written by Chancellor Alistair Darling's Treasury officials about new financial arrangements for Prince Charles and his sons.
Key paragraphs, disclosing the reason for the changes, are blacked out.
But the newspaper has obtained an uncensored version of the document which confirms that the Queen is grooming William as a 'Shadow King'.
The Queen, now aged 83, is said to need relief from some duties.
One blacked-out line states that 'the Princes [William and Harry] will increasingly incur expenditure when undertaking engagements on behalf of The Queen'.
Another censored section, stressing the key role for William, says that 'from next year, it is expected that Prince William will spend a significant part of his time on official engagements . . . we need to put the necessary provisions in place in anticipation of that'.
The breach of secrecy caused alarm at the Palace, with a senior Royal source expressing concern that the private details had been leaked in 'unredacted' - the official term for uncensored - form.
The reaction reflects the extreme sensitivity over the issue of the Queen's future in public life - and how to promote Prince William without undermining the monarch or Prince Charles.
It is bound to lead to new speculation that when the Queen dies, the monarchy could skip a generation, with the Crown bypassing Charles and being handed straight to William, although Royal sources strongly discount this option.