英伦广角 2009-03-29 首相提议英王室修改继承法（在线收听）

Prince Charles on royal duty at Buckingham Palace, safe in the knowledge that even if the rules on the succession and royal marriage are dragged into the 21st century, he’ll still get to be king.

Princes William and Harry too are safe in the pecking order, though as it stands at the moment neither of them could hold on to their chances of becoming monarch if they married a Catholic though that too may be about to change.

"It’s very simple to overcome the anti-Catholic legislation. You just have to repeal the words ‘or marry a Catholic or a Papist or ‘(and) similar words to do with the popish print."

The Queen wouldn’t be the Queen if the new proposals have been enforced at the time of her great, great grandmother Queen Victoria. Buckingham Palace would now be home to Princess Felicitas of Prussia or Queen Felicitas so she would presumably be known.

Removing the men-only succession rule would have a startling effect on the current royal line. As it stands now, Princess Anne and her children Peter and Zara are numbers 10, 11 and 12 respectively. If female royal children will be given equal status, and Peter and Zara leapfrog Princes Andrew and Edward and their children to take up positions 4, 5 and 6.

In fact Peter Philips and his wife Autumn would be double winners under the new plan, because she wouldn’t have had to renounce her Catholic faith as she did in order for Peter to keep his place in the succession line.

All of which begs the question: Why is this debate going on now? The answer, according to Royal commentator Alastair Bruce, lies with the Queen herself.

"The Palace hasn’t set the timing here, but 1701 is a long time ago and they need to bring it up to date. Let’s get the legislation done and as far as the Queen and Palace are concerned, it is probably good to get it done now. Her Majesty is very popular. Prince of Wales will not want to be dealing with this when he is king, and nor will Prince William. Get it done now."

We are a long way from ditching more than 300 years of royal history and rewriting the 1701 Act of Settlement which governs who can be our king or queen. But the winds of change are certainly blowing through the corridors of the House of Windsor.

David Bowden, Sky News, at Windsor Castle.