Prince William and Princess Kate ‘Want to Step In’ After Princess Diana’s Brother’s Book Rocks Royals

Prince William and Princess Kate aren’t looking to push King Charles III off the throne, but there is a growing feeling within the palace that the couple should be given a lot more power and responsibility amid the monarchy’s latest scandals, a source tells Closer.

“They simply want to be trusted with more of the heavy lifting,” explains the source, adding that the Waleses, both 44, are “already racing around the country with barely a gap in their schedules because they are so essential to keeping everything steady.”

Over the past year, the royal family has faced a series of challenges, from Charles, 77, and Kate’s cancer battles to the intense public scrutiny surrounding Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and Sarah “Fergie” Ferguson‘s close ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

(The former Duke and Duchess of York, both 66, have continuously denied any wrongdoing and maintained their innocence, with a representative for Fergie previously stating that she was “taken in” by Epstein’s “lies.)

Now, Princess Diana‘s brother Charles Spencer is set to release a bombshell-filled memoir entitled Swan Song: Diana, My Sister on Tuesday, September 22.

“The feeling for a lot of the people in the king’s circle is that it’s time he takes full advantage of [William and Kate’s] willingness to jump in and serve,” says the source. “His Majesty has a very hard time letting go of the reins, but there’s no doubt he’s been knocked sideways by this book.”

Per an excerpt published by the Daily Mail, the Earl of Spencer, 62, recalled a conversation he had with a then-Prince Charles just days after her death in 1997 in which his former brother-in-law allegedly told him over the phone, “Rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough!”

In response, Buckingham Palace issued a rare statement.

“While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and color memory in ways others do not recognize, even many years after such a loss,” a spokesperson told People.

“It paints him as this awful villain and there’s very little that he can do to defend himself or clear his name once these things have been published,” admits the source. “It’s no wonder William and Kate want to step in and increasingly, there are people around them who feel Charles should take advantage of that.”