Prince Laurent slammed over business class seat

Belgium's Prince Laurent has been criticised by parliament for taking up a business class seat on a plane when he had only paid an economy fare.

The 47-year-old royal - the son of King Albert II and Queen Paola - and his British-born wife Princess Claire reportedly settled into seats they hadn't paid for while on a Brussels Airlines flight to Stockholm to attend the royal wedding of Sweden's Crown Princess Victoria and Daniel Westling last June.

According to reports in the Belgian press, Prime Minister Yves Leterme has criticised his conduct as "incorrect" and admitted he is looking to "distance" himself from the prince.

After being told by cabin crew to assume their correct seats at the back of the plane, the troublesome royal allegedly slammed the airline employees as "unprofessional".

Prince Laurent and his wife then refused to pay for their drinks when they eventually took up the seats they had paid for, leading Swedish passengers on the plane to follow their example and demand their beverages were also free.

Just two months after the incident, the couple, their three children - Princess Louise, seven, and five-year-old twins Prince Nicolas and Prince Aymeric - and a nanny reportedly grabbed seats in the business class section of a plane when they were travelling back from a holiday in Italy.

However, this time, the crew were believed to have turned a blind eye to their behaviour in order to avoid causing a scene.

This isn't the first time Prince Laurent has landed himself in trouble in recent weeks. Earlier in the month, the royal had his driving licence confiscated after being caught speeding through the streets of Brussels at 50mph in a 30mph zone.

After being stripped of his licence on the spot, the incident marked the third time Prince Laurent had been in trouble for speeding - first losing his licence in 1987 and being caught again in Bruges in 1997.