Spectre of abdication raised

LONDON - The Prince of Wales's hopes for public acceptance of his relationship with Ms Camilla Parker Bowles came under scrutiny…

LONDON - The Prince of Wales's hopes for public acceptance of his relationship with Ms Camilla Parker Bowles came under scrutiny last night as the spectre abdication was raised by a former Tory minister.

The woman who has deliberately remained in the shadows for nearly three decades was the subject of TV programmes watched by millions.marking the start of a campaign to gain public sympathy, was followed by further debate on BBC1's Heart of the matter.

A comment by Ms Ann Widdecombe, former Tory minister and a member of the British Privy Council, left BBC viewers thinking of the prince's great- uncle, Edward VIII, who quit the throne for the woman he loved. "I hope we don't end up with an abdication," she said.