The Prince of Wales chuckled after being told his late grandfather, Prince Philip, demanded politicians and civil servants cough up money for charity in a direct way.
Prince William laughed at hearing about his grandfather's cheeky plea
Prince William was visiting East Belfast Mission at the Skainos Centre in Northern Ireland on Tuesday (27.06.23), amid his tour of the UK to launch his Homewards initiative to end homelessness.
And Reverend Brian Anderson, who is the chair of the board for the building, recalled how the Duke of Edinburgh - who died in April 2021 aged 99 - allegedly swore at them to donate the money needed to fund the cost of the charity's building.
The Rev said: "He just immediately asked [the politicians and civil servants], 'Why don’t you just give them the money?’ There was an expletive in there but I'm not going to say that. And three weeks later the money turned up."
William reacted to the crowds that gathered to see the royal: "That sounds like my grandfather.
"The Reverend has been telling me stories about my grandfather."
EBM moved into a £23 million state-of-the-art building known as “Skainos” (Greek for tent) in October 2012.
William was inspired by the "heartbreaking" trips he used to make with his mother, the late Princess Diana, to launch the initiative.
The future king declared he is pleased to be at the “start of our path to ending” rough sleeping and temporary accommodation as he launched the campaign during a visit to Lambeth, south London, on Monday (26.06.23), and recalled how his beloved mum used to take him on official visits to homelessness organisations from a young age.
He said: “My first visit to a homelessness shelter was when I was 11, with my mother. The visits we made left a deep and lasting impression.
“I met so many extraordinary people and listened to so many heart-breaking personal stories.
"Too many people have found themselves without a stable and permanent place to call home.”
The 41-year-old royal - who is patron of homelessness charities Centrepoint and The Passage - hailed Homewards as a "unique opportunity" that he hopes will have a major impact.
He said: “Over the next five years, I believe that we have a unique opportunity to develop innovative new solutions and scale tangible impact.
“This will inspire belief throughout the UK – and beyond – that homelessness can be ended for good."
The five-year project will initially focus on six locations and will see local business, organisations and individuals encouraged to team up to tackle the issue, with up to £500,000 of funding available to deliver a housing project.
William added: “I am fortunate to have seen first-hand the tireless work of people and organisations across the sector, the tangible impact their efforts can have and what can be done when communities are able to focus on preventing homelessness, rather than managing it.
“It’s a big task, but I firmly believe that by working together it is possible to make homelessness rare, brief, and unrepeated and I am very much looking forward to working with our six locations to make our ambition a reality.”
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