Will Prince Charles wed Camilla?

The Archbishop of Canterbury has cleared the way for the Prince of Wales and Camilla Parker Bowles to marry, reports The Times, London.

'A friend of the Prince, who is authorised to speak on his behalf, confirmed publicly for the first time yesterday that the couple had discussed marriage. In the past, courtiers have refused even privately to acknowledge that such discussions had taken place,' said the article.

"It would be wrong to give the impression that they have not talked about it and are against it. That would not be right. But nobody will rush into it or bounce them into it. It's a personal decision," the friend told The Times last night.

The admission comes after the Archbishop, Dr Rowan Williams, dropped his objections to such  a union after secret talks with the Prince last year. According to The Times, Senior members of the Church of England's evangelical wing, which takes a conservative line on sexual matters, would support the marriage if the Prince and Mrs Parker Bowles acknowledged wrongdoing in the past.

But while the Archbishop indicated that he would support a union if the couple chose to formalise their relationship,the marriage would raise constitutional questions and require the Queen's consent, The Times said.

Under the Royal Marriage of Act 1772, the Prince has to receive the permission of the monarch to marry. The Queen, who has met Mrs Parker Bowles on only a handful of occasions since confirmation of her relationship with the Prince, has been implacably hostile to remarriage, the article said.

According to the article, it was unclear whether the Church would sanction a remarriage in church but it is unlikely to object if the Prince decided on a low-key wedding in St Mary's, Tetbury, his local church in Gloucestershire, the article said.

Last year, the Church of England relaxed its rules on the remarriage of divorcees, with the General Synod conceding that there were exceptional circumstances where divorcees with a partner still alive could remarry in church. Dr Williams has opposed the remarriage of divorcees where a previous partner is still living, except in exceptional circumstances, The Times said.

The view of the Church of England leadership is critical, because, as King, the Prince would succeed his mother as Supreme Governor of the Church. 

Asked when an announcement about the wedding could be expected,  the Prince's friend said that it was out of the question until the inquiry by Sir John Stevens, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, had been concluded.   "With the inquest and the inquiry under way, nothing can be considered until we reached the next stage," The Times quoted the friend as saying.

Pressed when that would be, the friend replied: "Early next year at the soonest."