Norman Baker talks to Andrew Lownie about the royals' finances

Back in the day, Norman Baker was my favourite Liberal Democrat MP. So it's good to see he's alive and kicking, even if his lens could do with a clean.

There's a lot to be said for a constitutional monarchy, but Norman makes a good case that there's a need for ours to be funded with less secrecy and a clearer sense of what belongs to the royal family and what belongs to the nation.

The title of his new book – Royal Mint, National Debt -– is drawn from an observation of William Cobbett's:

You can tell a lot about a country which refers to the Royal Mint and the National Debt.

Andrew Lownie is the author of a recent book on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (as he now is). Before he turned his attention to the royal family, Lownie wrote about Britain's intelligence services. He says he found them much more cooperative than he has the royals.