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Charles' 'Black Spider' Memos Due For Release

Charles' 'Black Spider' Memos Due For Release

Letters sent by Prince Charles to government ministers are finally expected to be made public later after a 10 year battle to stop them remaining secret.

The correspondence - known as the "black spider" memos - were sent by the Prince to several government ministers between September 2004 and March 2005.

The Prince of Wales today declined to reply to questions about the imminent release of the letters, as he arrived at an event in Oxford Street, London.

A journalist asked if he was "worried" about the letters and if he was still writing to ministers, he said: "very predictable".

A Guardian journalist initially attempted to get the contents of the letters released under the Freedom of Information Act but was unsuccessful.

After a lengthy appeal process, the UK's highest court, the Supreme Court, finally agreed to quash the ban on their publication last month.

It cleared the way for the memos to be made available.

They are known as the "black spider" memos because of the Prince's distinctive handwriting and abundant use of underlining and exclamation marks.

According to previous attorney general Dominic Grieve, they reflect the heir to the throne's "most deeply held personal views and beliefs".

Mr Grieve vetoed an original decision made by the Upper Tribunal in 2012 that the letters should be made public, but it was eventually ruled that his actions were invalid, paving the way for the documents finally to be disclosed.

A number of the letters will be published with some of the passages blacked out following another ruling by the Upper Tribunal on Tuesday.

The hearing decided that the material should be subject to "provisional redactions" to protect personal data of people other than Charles.

The documents are expected to be published by the Guardian, the Information Commissioner and the Cabinet Office at 3pm.