Charles blasted over building plan

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Nick Raynsford said that Prince Charles had behaved in an "almost feudal" way by using contacts with the Qatari Royal Family to ensure that the modernist design for the Chelsea Barracks site in London was dropped.

And the Labour MP was backed by the President of the Royal Institute of British Architects, Sunand Prasad, who said the Prince's intervention could deter investors from developing projects in London.

The Middle East owners of the 12.8-acre site opposite the historic Royal Hospital announced they had withdrawn their planning application, less than a week before it was due to be considered by planning chiefs.

The decision follows a direct intervention by the Prince, who wrote to the chairman of Qatari Diar, the real estate investment company behind the scheme, urging him to consider alternatives to the modern design created by Lord Rogers's firm of architects.

The move drew a furious response from Lord Rogers, who described it as a "disastrous" decision after two and a half years of consultation with local authorities and residents.

And Mr Raynsford told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I do believe there is a very dangerous precedent here when the heir to the throne intervenes in a decision which should be taken through normal democratic processes.

"We have a constitutional monarchy in this country and the monarchy should be protected from involvement in controversy which inevitably occurs in day-to-day decision making."