When any member of the British royal family wades from the palace and into politics, it is a safe bet that criticism will follow — even when it is Charles, Prince of Wales. The aging heir apparent to the British throne took that route on Friday when he reportedly called the government’s plan to start deporting asylum-seekers to Rwanda “appalling,” which has raised the hackles of some in Britain who view with unease the prince’s meddling in political matters. 

While this may seem just a blip on an otherwise very busy radar, the root of the unease is the trouble that Prince Charles’s high-profile opining could spell once he presumably becomes king. The United Kingdom is, of course, a parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy in which the role of royals in public life looms large but in the political sphere is mainly ceremonial. A monarch who injects politics into the government’s business risks triggering a constitutional crisis. That in turn could have even deeper political and social ramifications for a post-Brexit Britain. 

“Prince Charles is an adornment to our public life, but that will cease to be charming if he attempts to behave the same way when he is king,” a senior cabinet minister said, the Times of London reported. “That will present serious constitutional issues.”

That newspaper indicated that Charles’s frustration with Prime Minister Johnson’s asylum policy is particularly pronounced as the prince is scheduled to represent the queen at a Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting at Kigali, the Rwandan capital, later this month. Under a deal struck in April by the British home secretary, Priti Patel, immigrants who arrive in Britain illegally will face deportation to Rwanda. The prince’s disapproving comment reportedly followed a court ruling that upheld the policy. The first flight is set for Tuesday.  

The flap prompted Clarence House, the official London residence of Charles and and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, to issue a statement that read, “We would not comment on supposed anonymous private conversations with the Prince of Wales, except to restate that he remains politically neutral,” adding, “Matters of policy are decisions for government.”

Be that as it may, multiple cabinet ministers are concerned by reports from courtiers that Charles wants to be more forward in stating his views, the Times of London reported. 

With the queen’s Platinum Jubilee now safely consigned to the history books, her son appears keen to open a chapter that Elizabeth II might prefer stay unwritten, precisely because the subject is politics. As head of state, Queen Elizabeth II has to remain strictly neutral on political matters, and does not vote. According to the AP, the 73-year-old prince has been an outspoken supporter of various causes, such as campaigning against climate change and plastic pollution in oceans. He has also been accused of meddling in politics by speaking up about property developments he opposed and other issues.

Prince Charles is not the only British royal who seems to be in feather-ruffling mode. The royal’s brother, Prince Andrew,  dubbed by the Times of London the “pariah prince,” will be stepping out in public at an official event at Windsor Castle on Monday. This will mark the first time that Andrew will appear in public alongside senior members of the royal family following a multimillion-dollar settlement to an American, Virginia Giuffre, that kept her allegations of sexual abuse out of court. Andrew denied those allegations. How the British public will respond to his surprise reboot remains to be seen.