This means that Princess Eugenie has not had to pay anything for her cottage on the Kensington Palace estate, and the same can be said for Princess Beatrice with her royal London apartment. While King Charles has not commented on the matter, it is believed that some people are not happy about the sisters living rent-free, especially as they are not working royals. Although Prince William has not commented on the matter; it has been widely reported that he may want his cousins to start paying their own way.

This, reportedly, has left Sarah Ferguson – Beatrice and Eugenie’s mother – “raging”, with a source telling Closer magazine that she blames Prince William for the calls for the sisters to leave their royal homes or start paying rent.

An insider said: “Sarah is raging about the way this has all unfolded and she blames William for poisoning the King against her girls.

“She says there’s been a very deliberate effort to turn the tide against Eugenie and Beatrice and she believes William has been the driving force.

“The fact that they’re being unfairly singled out and painted as some sort of burden on the monarchy when they’ve always bent over backwards to serve The Crown and the family infuriates her.”

The source continued: “As far as she’s concerned, they’ve become convenient scapegoats in William’s obsession with slimming down the monarchy.”

It is believed the prince has always been close to Beatrice and Eugenie, and would not want them to be treated unfairly.