WILLIAM 'DELIGHTED' TO BE IN SINGAPORE AND SAYS KATE 'SORRY SHE CAN'T BE HERE'

The Prince of Wales has said he is "delighted" to be in Singapore but the Princess of Wales is "sorry she can't be here" as she is helping Prince George through his "first set of major exams", during a speech at the United for Wildlife summit.

William delivered the speech at the summit, which is aimed at tackling the illegal trade in animal parts, at the Flower Dome, Gardens by the Bay, on Monday afternoon.

He began by saying: "I'm delighted to be back in Singapore.

"It has been 11 years since Catherine and I enjoyed a memorable visit here on behalf of my late grandmother in her Diamond Jubilee year.

"And I should mention that Catherine is very sorry she can't be here - she is helping George through his first set of major exams."

William is in Singapore for the Earthshot Prize ceremony on Tuesday, aimed at recognising solutions to "repair" the planet, and will see five category winners presented with £1 million each to scale up their environmental ideas.

Founded by the prince and The Royal Foundation in 2014, United for Wildlife aims to make it impossible for traffickers to transport, finance or profit from illegal wildlife products.

During his speech, William said flora and fauna is the fourth most traded illegal commodity in the world, worth up to 20 billion dollars (£16.1 billion), which is a "global issue that demands immediate attention from us all".

William told attendees the focus of his visit this week is "how we collectively overcome our planet's greatest environmental challenges".