London:
A senior British Council executive has already mocked three-year-old Prince George on the social media as an example of “white privilege” living off public money”, prompting a probe against her.
Angela Gibbins, head of global estates at the UK-based charity which promotes British culture and language around the world, reportedly attacked the young royal, then aged two, for his “white privilege” after a photograph was released to mark Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday earlier this year.
“White privilege. That cheeky grin is the innate knowledge he’s royal, rich, advantaged and will never know ANY difficulties or hardships in life. Let’s find photos of 3yo (year old) Syrian refugee children and see if they look alike, eh,” Gibbins wrote on Facebook below one of the images of Prince George, The Sun reported.
When a number of others reacted in outrage, Gibbins is said to have responded: “I’m sound in my socialist, atheist and republican opinions. I don’t believe the royal family have any place in a modern democracy, least of all when they live on public money. That’s privilege and it needs to end”.
British Council stressed that the comments do not reflect that of the charity. A spokesperson said: “This comment was made on a private social media account. It has absolutely no connection to the British Council and does not represent the views of the British Council”.
“That said, we expect the highest standards of our staff and we will be investigating the matter further”.
The British Council works in more than 100 countries to provide educational opportunities and cultural relations and is sponsored by the UK Foreign Office. It has a Royal Charter and its patron is the Queen.
Prince George, who is third in line to Britain’s throne after his grandfather Prince Charles and father Prince William, recently celebrated his third birthday on July 22.
