Kate may get ring but William to visit NZ alone

Bookmakers say Prince William and Kate Middleton will get engaged in 2010.

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The odds may be shortening that Prince William will pop the question to girlfriend Kate Middleton in the new year, but they won't be getting engaged here.

Clarence House has confirmed that Middleton will not be accompanying the prince on his visit here next month to open the new Supreme Court in Wellington.

The British online bookmaker Skybet.com is offering evens that the pair will announce their engagement in 2010. Punters have apparently interpreted the signing by the Queen of a new, more aggressive policy aimed at protecting the royal family from paparazzi during private time as a signal that she expects extra activity, such as a royal engagement. Since then, British papers have been abuzz with rumours of an imminent engagement.

A Department of Internal Affairs document shows the cost to New Zealand taxpayers of hosting, transporting and protecting William for his three-day visit will be $200,000.

Royal watchers can follow the 27-year-old prince's visit on Facebook and Bebo after the New Zealand government received royal approval to set up pages on the social networking sites.

A spokesman from London's Clarence House told the Sunday Star-Times there was no need for the prince to bring his own chef because he would be eating Kiwi cuisine, including a hangi at the governor-general's residence in Auckland and a barbecue hosted by Prime Minister John Key in Wellington.

Prince William will stay at Government House in Auckland and a hotel in Wellington because Government House is being refurbished. The tour starts on January 17 and the first official engagement involves one of William's personal passions: rugby.

He will tour the construction zone that is Eden Park, which will be the premier venue for the 2011 world cup. He will meet some All Blacks on the playing field and watch some children playing rugby, before joining Kiwi master yachtsmen Grant Dalton and Dean Barker for some sailing on Auckland's harbour, aboard a yacht that was an early trial boat in the 1999-2000 America's Cup in Auckland.

The following day the prince will lay a wreath and pay his respects at the National Memorial in Wellington. He will inspect and later informally chat with members of a 100-strong Guard of Honour that will include servicemen who have served in Iraq, Afghanistan and East Timor.

He will then open the new Supreme Court building and attend a private lunch with members of the judiciary and government, before mingling with members of the public outside. He also hopes to visit the Karori Wildlife Sanctuary and meet members of the local iwi.

The prince will finish his New Zealand trip with a visit to a children's ward at Wellington Hospital. He then leaves for an "unofficial" visit to Australia where he hopes to enjoy "a free afternoon in Sydney".

New Zealand republicans say William's visit is simply a public relations exercise for Buckingham Palace.

Lewis Holden, chair of the Republican Movement of Aotearoa New Zealand, said polls showed those under the age of 39 were less likely to support the monarchy and the palace was hoping the prince's popularity and youth would generate more interest among young people.

"They're treating New Zealand as a training ground for the future of the monarchy, while at the same time attempting to arrest the decline in support for the monarchy in Australia and New Zealand."

- © Fairfax NZ News