These modern princesses lack what it takes to be a role model for other young women

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie are eighth and ninth in line to the throne, and want us to know that they consider themselves trailblazers. In Vogue magazine this week, the girls are photographed with their dogs, talking about their busy lives. They are working in real jobs, carrying out royal duties, and they want to be considered modern career women.

I pray there is never a disaster which eliminates those above them in the royal pecking order so these two bits of fluff occupy any position of responsibility. It’s widely reported that their father, the Duke of York, put considerable pressure on his mother and Prince Charles to get the girls included at royal events. But are they a version of modern womanhood that any British girls would respect or emulate?

Zara Tindall (née Phillips), whose mother refused to allow her to have a title, is a far better role model. Zara, her brother and her husband all seem pretty straightforward people who work at something they are good at and don’t whinge.

At 28 and 29, Eugenie and Beatrice seem naïve and somewhat immature. They certainly have ideas above their station when it comes to their place in modern society. Eugenie is getting married in St George’s Chapel at Windsor on 12 October and tells us it will be a “plastic-free” event. She’s also having a carriage ride through Windsor Great Park, and has invited members of the public to come along.

Meghan Markle worked her backside off for years as a jobbing actress before she found her prince. This pair – born to a mother with a somewhat chequered career history, who, post-divorce, has promoted slimming aids and royal souvenirs on shopping channels – lack stamina in comparison.