Publishing of Princess Diana letters nixed

LONDON, Feb. 19 (UPI) -- Letters written by Britain's Princess Diana to government officials won't be published due to their private nature, the British government says.

The Office of the Information Commissioner ruled the letters Diana wrote to top British officials weren't related to government policy and therefore wouldn't be published under the Freedom of Information Act, The Daily Telegraph said Wednesday.

The Freedom of Information Act doesn't apply to members of Britain's royal family such as Diana, princess of Wales. But challenges claiming public interest grounds can be made in individual cases related to royal family members, the Telegraph said.

The letters written by Diana were to former British Prime Ministers John Major and Tony Blair. Details regarding the letters' content haven't been released.

The Telegraph said the princess, who died in a car crash on Aug. 31, 1997, had also written letters to Douglas Hurd and Robin Cook while each was serving as British foreign secretary.

Those letters were reportedly about a possible ambassador's position, the newspaper reported.