Boris Johnson 'couldn't think of compliment' for Prince Charles tribute

·Breaking News Editor, Yahoo News UK

Updated 14 June 2022 at 7:11 am·2-min read

The Prince of Wales and Prime Minister Boris Johnson host a Commonwealth Leaders' Reception during the Cop26 summit at the Scottish Event Campus (SEC) in Glasgow. Picture date: Tuesday November 2, 2021. — The PM and Prince Charles share a laugh at the Commonwealth Leaders' Reception in November last year, though their relationship is reportedly strained. (PA)

Boris Johnson's relationship with the Prince of Wales deteriorated to such an extent that the prime minister struggled to praise Charles when asked to film a personal tribute to him, it has been claimed.

According to the Times, the prime minister was asked in the autumn of 2020 to contribute to a planned eulogy to Charles in the event of his death.

The newspaper claims that Johnson struggled to find anything positive to say about the heir to the throne and instead told aides that he did not like Charles and made jokes.

He apparently described Charles as the “king of biscuits”, in reference to his Duchy Organic brand and said he was worried Charles would take his recipe to the grave.

The claims come amid a growing number of reports that the two men do not see eye to eye.

The relationship between the pair is said to have deteriorated after a trip to Scotland in which the prime minister was branded "shambolic".

The Prince of Wales, known as the Duke of Rothesay when in Scotland, watches the Pipes and Drums of the 7th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland at a ceremony to present service medals to soldiers from the 51st Highland, 7th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland in the grounds of Birkhall in Ballater, Aberdeenshire. (Photo by Andrew Milligan/PA Images via Getty Images) — Johnson was invited to Prince Charles' Scottish home, Birkhall in Aberdeenshire. (Getty)

The prime minister travelled to Birkhall, Charles' home in the Scottish Highlands, at the end of the Queen's summer break in 2019.

Sources have claimed the heir to the throne was less than impressed after Johnson arrived in a "shambolic state", and was "distracted" and “clearly not focused” on the meeting.

According to the Mail on Sunday, Charles remained "Sphynx-like" throughout their meeting. However, he is believed to have come to the conclusion that the PM - who at that point had only been power for a few weeks - had shown "disrespectful" behaviour.

Read more: The Queen should rest - Charles must do the heavy lifting

FILE - Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie, are seated during the Platinum Jubilee Pageant, in London, Sunday June 5, 2022. When British Prime Minister Boris Johnson survived a no-confidence vote this week, at least one other world leader shared his relief. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said it was “great news” that “we have not lost a very important ally.” It was a welcome endorsement for a British leader who divides his country, and his party, but has won wide praise as an ally of Ukraine. (Chris Jackson/Pool Photo via AP, File) — Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie seen during the Platinum Jubilee Pageant. (PA)

Tensions appear to have worsened over Johnson's plan to send asylum seekers on a 5,000-mile charter flight to Rwanda, which Charles is reported to have branded "appalling".

Asked in an interview on LBS radio on Monday if Charles was "wrong", the PM refused to address the question and instead said “most people” could see people-smuggling gangs “need to be stopped”.

Pressed again, Johnson replied: “I’ve answered that in the sense that I do think it’s the job of government to stop people breaking the law and to support people who are doing the right thing. That’s what we’re doing.”

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman later said Johnson “has nothing but respect and admiration for the Prince of Wales, who’s spoken out on a number of issues, not least the environment”.