Have files on Prince Andrew's controversial role as Britain's trade envoy been destroyed?

Official documents that could shed light on Prince Andrew's controversial role as Britain's trade envoy may have been destroyed.

The Government has admitted that memos, emails and cables sent between officials about the Duke of York's foreign visits when he was a roving trade ambassador 'may no longer be retained'.

Under a so-called 'retention policy', the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) send documents of 'historical importance' to the National Archives in Kew, south-west London, or destroy them.

Last night, former diplomat Simon Wilson, who was involved with a number of Andrew's trade envoy visits while at the British embassy in Bahrain in the early 2000s, said: 'The Duke of York was directly employed by the Government and details of his visits should be in the public domain.'

Prince Andrew (left) attending a military air display in 2010 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

The Government has admitted that memos, emails and cables sent between officials about the Duke of York's foreign visits when he was a roving trade ambassador 'may no longer be retained'. The Duke pictured riding a horse earlier this month

The mystery surrounding their whereabouts comes after The Mail on Sunday previously revealed how Prince Andrew exploited his role to push the business interests of his close friend, the multi-millionaire financier David Rowland.

Royal biographer Andrew Lownie has used the Freedom of Information Act to request documents from 2001 about the people who accompanied the duke on his trade trips, his work schedule and any correspondence between officials and the duke's private office. 

But the DBT, a successor of the body that, with the Foreign Office, oversaw Andrew's visits, said it did not hold the information.

The Information Commissioner's Office, which probed how officials responded to Dr Lownie's request, said that even if such information previously existed 'it may no longer be retained'. 

Prince Andrew talking to his Chinese guide in Beijing back in 2004 on a six-day trip when he was Britain's international trade and investment representative

Dr Lownie said he has not been able to find the information in the National Archives and – despite repeated requests from the Mail – the DBT refused to say whether the documents had been destroyed.

Dr Lownie said: 'I think there are a lot of questions.' He suggested that a failure to answer the questions may result in the appearance of a cover-up.

Such papers are generally kept for up to 20 years, before 'records of historical value' are transferred to the National Archives, which defines information of historical value as that which reflects 'the 'what, why and how' of government'.

The DBT said: 'The department has complied with our obligations under the Freedom of Information Act, and this was confirmed by the Information Commissioner's Office.'