Queen, husband will not give evidence at Diana inquest: coroner
LONDON (AFP) — Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip will not be called to give evidence at the inquest into the death of princess Diana, the coroner ruled Friday.
The father of Diana's lover Dodi Fayed, who was killed in the 1997 Paris car crash, had particularly wanted the prince to be a witness as he maintains he was at the head of an establishment plot to murder the couple.
But judge Scott Baker said: "In my judgment it is not expedient to call the Duke of Edinburgh (Prince Philip) to give evidence, nor do I think the Queen should be asked to answer the questions posed" by Mohamed Al-Fayed's lawyer.
"Neither step will, in my judgment, further the inquest process," he said after a day of legal argument.
The coroner said in a preliminary hearing in July last year that the queen and her husband would not be approached by officials investigating the death, but pledged to keep the position under review.
Al-Fayed has repeatedly claimed that Diana and his son were killed by British intelligence at Prince Philip's behest because of opposition to the mother of the future king marrying a Muslim and having his child.
Other witnesses at the long-running London hearing, which is due to end in April, have rubbished the multi-millionaire Harrods owner's claims, including the former head of Britain's overseas intelligence agency, MI6.
Al-Fayed's spokeswoman Katharine Witty said he was "extremely disappointed" by the coroner's ruling and hoped his reasons would be made public.
"In the meantime, Mr Al-Fayed's lawyers are discussing the legal options open to them, including judicial review," she added.
Earlier Friday, London police ruled out launching a perjury investigation into Diana's former butler, Paul Burrell, until after the inquest is concluded.
Burrell, who now lives in the United States, has refused to return to Britain to answer allegations that he lied on oath to the inquest jury when he gave evidence earlier this year.
The 49-year-old former aide apparently admitted in a secretly taped conversation later published by The Sun tabloid that he had not told "the whole truth" when he appeared in the witness box.
The coroner has no powers to compel Burrell to give testimony again as he lives outside British jurisdiction.
