[ad_1]
LONDON – Britain’s data watchdog has launched an investigation after a report that staff at the elite hospital where Kate, Princess of Wales, had surgery had attempted to access her medical records.
Kate, 42, has been the subject of intrigue and conspiracy theories around the world after undergoing an unspecified abdominal procedure in January at the London Clinic, used by royalty and celebrities. For some, the mystery appeared solved this week after video emerged of her and William, Prince of Wales, shopping near her home in Windsor.
But on Tuesday The British tabloid The Mirror reported that the clinic was investigating an allegation that at least one staff member attempted to access her records while she was a patient at the world-renowned institution.
The Information Commissioner’s Office said in a statement to NBC News on Wednesday that it had “received a breach report” and was “evaluating the information provided.”
NBC News has contacted Kensington Palace and the London Clinic for comment.
Kensington Palace told Reuters news agency it was “a matter for the London Clinic.”
The hospital, which also treated King Charles III, told The Mirror: “We firmly believe that all our patients, regardless of their condition, deserve complete privacy and confidentiality regarding their medical information.”
British Health Minister Maria Caulfield called the allegations “quite serious” and said it was “a serious thing to access notes that you don’t have permission for.”
“From a health perspective, it’s not acceptable to look at people’s notes, but it has been detected and action has been taken,” he said in an interview with Sky News.
When asked about the breach report received by the Information Commissioner’s Office, a spokesperson for London’s Metropolitan Police said: “We are not aware of any referral to the Metropolitan Police at this time.”
It’s the latest twist in a royal saga that refuses to go away.
The palace announced in January that Kate would be taking more than two months off after undergoing unspecified abdominal surgery.
But she has become the subject of an entire ecosystem of speculation and conspiracy theories that fill the void of details she and William have tried to keep private about the situation.
Little information has been provided about Kate’s surgery or condition, while the now infamously doctored family photo that was reported by major news agencies sent royal rumors into overdrive.
Some have criticized the level of speculation, and even the interest and coverage itself, of this royal soap opera. But the story also speaks to fundamental tensions between the palace, the press and the public over transparency and accountability.
The British press, dominated by conservatives, has been largely sympathetic to the family. These newspapers have condemned the social media masses who speculate about Kate’s health, while fueling her story by giving it blanket coverage.
Chief among them is The Sun, a right-wing tabloid and one of the country’s best-selling newspapers, which this week published a video it said showed Kate and William shopping. The images were taken by an engineer named Nelson Silva, who told the newspaper that his video should put to rest rumors about Kate’s whereabouts and condition.
“I’m not so surprised that these comments have continued, I’m just confused as to how exactly they can continue,” he said of the conspiracy theories, in which some people had suggested that the person in the video was not Kate. “This is a video that clearly shows her and William. I saw them with my own eyes. “It was a completely relaxed situation.”