A top aide to Foreign Secretary David Lammy has been accused of being "anti-British" after questioning whether Britons would mourn the death of Prince William.
Labour adviser Ben Judah - who has been described as "Lammy's brain" - faces the damning accusations over his comments in the wake of the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Judah had written: "There have been tears for the Queen this week, but can we imagine the same for Prince William decades from now?
"Looking at him, I can't shake the feeling that he is just a west Londoner."
Labour adviser Ben Judah has been described as "Lammy's brain"
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Also in 2022, Judah had made disparaging remarks about the Commonwealth
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Also in 2022, Judah had made disparaging remarks about the Commonwealth in a column - the same bloc with which both Lammy and Sir Keir Starmer have flown around the world to hold talks this week.
He wrote: "We pretended with her [the Queen] and for her that the Commonwealth was real, that there was love and affection for her, or for us, in countries we'd conquered and lost, that we were still a great power.
"And if not an empire, then she ruled its heir. As she aged, shrinking into her clothes, it became clear there wasn't enough there, behind the insignia of government, to hold us up in the world."
While he also said of King Charles: "The King is not a stupid man. 'Big Ears' of the tabloid press has spent his life knowing there is nothing sacred about him."
MORE ANTI-BRITISH OUTRAGE:
A top aide to Foreign Secretary David Lammy has been accused of being "anti-British"
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Judah said he couldn't "shake the feeling that he is just a west Londoner"
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Judah has now come under fire from senior Tories - with ex-leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith telling the Mail that the remarks were typical of the Labour Left's "anti-monarchist, anti-British and republican tone".
Duncan Smith said: "Given David Lammy's own record in making ridiculous remarks, it should come as no surprise that he picked this adviser to assist him.
"These remarks are typical of the Labour Left.
"They despise the country they are in, its history - and everything about it."
Just last week, Lammy wrote on social media: "His Majesty The King continues [the Queen's] legacy of service"
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Foreign Office sources, in response to the row, defended Judah - and have pointed to a 2020 article in which he had written "Prince Charles will be a very good king".
They also stressed that the Foreign Secretary was a supporter of the monarchy, and that only last week during the King's visit to Australia, Lammy had written on social media: "Growing up, my mother adored the Royal Family.
"Her late Majesty the Queen's life of service exemplified the values that unite our country and society.
"His Majesty The King continues that legacy of service."
A friend of Judah told the Mail: "Ben wasn't being anti-monarchist - he was just asking how anyone else could reach the stature of the late Queen."
