Royal snub to Blair, Brown

It's the political whodunit before the royal wedding. The exclusion of former Labour Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown from Friday's wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton has led to furious speculation over whether it was a calculated snub and, if so, who was behind it. Labou
r MPs suspect Prime Minister David Cameron's office. "I blame Downing Street for not spotting it and saying, 'We don't like Gordon Brown either, but he really should be there'," said Labour's shadow justice minister Chris Bryant.
"It makes you want to ask what the motive is. It seems to be picking a fight quite unnecessarily," added Labour MP Graham Allen.

Former Labour Europe minister Denis Macshane said he will table Parliamentary questions to find out whether the government had any role, adding: "It is quite gratuitous to invite two living former Prime Ministers who are Conservatives, but snub the ones that are Labour."

The Palace's initial explanation was that former Tory premiers Margaret Thatcher and John Major are both Knights of the Garter - the highest knighthood given by the royal family. In addition, Major was made a guardian of William and his brother Harry after the death of Princess Diana in 1997.

A Palace spokesperson said, "It is a private wedding and the couple are entitled to invite whoever they want. Prince William is not the Prince of Wales or the King, and he hasn't got that link to prime ministers in the way that the Queen does."