THE Supreme Court has ruled that letters written by Prince Charles to government ministers between 2004 and 2005 should be revealed under the Freedom of Information Act.

Prince Charles, a resident of Highgrove near Tetbury, contacted seven government departments between 2004 and 2005 with his personal views and beliefs, which falls outside his remit as a potential monarch.

This result comes after five years of campaigning by a Guardian newspaper journalist for the release of the correspondence to the public.

Five of the seven judges ruled that the letters should be made public and overturned a certificate from the Attorney General, the government's top lawyer, which sought to keep the letters secret.

The judgement handed down by the Supreme Court explained that there was no good reason for the Attorney General to have issued the certificate and now the government will need to release the documents.

Clarence House released a short statement in response to the Supreme Court's judgment.

They said: "This is a matter for the government. Clarence House is disappointed the principle of privacy has not been upheld."