"The thinking seems to be that his wife and family are William's number one priority, so much of his official work might also continue behind the scenes."įor her part, Queen Camilla is maintaining a full program of engagements throughout her husband's treatment, a promise she made to the King. "From a media perspective we think that the pressure is on the Prince of Wales right now, given that his father will not be visible for some time, but I'm not sure that we will notice a significant increase in William's official engagements, at least in the short term," Little says. They are already under too much pressure, he says. So, will the King's engagements now be shared out or will they be postponed or cancelled? Majesty magazine's managing editor Joe Little thinks it's unlikely William, Camilla and Anne will take on more. Some of those engagements could fall on the shoulders of other members of the working royal family, actually a pretty small team, especially when you consider the Princess of Wales is at home recuperating following abdominal surgery and won't be returning to work until after Easter.Īnd any speculation that Prince Harry might return to royal duties was dashed when his flying visit lasted barely 25 hours - his rift with his brother still very much intact. But public-facing engagements are not possible until he has completed his treatment and doctors have approved a return to work. He is also remaining in contact with the UK prime minister for their regular schedule of one-on-one chats and hopes to add other important meetings to his private diary. A small team of stand-insįor the moment, the King is still carrying out his constitutional duties - the necessary government business that comes daily in red boxes and requires thorough scrutiny. It's a singular job with pre-determined stand-ins, so health aside, it's surely important to consider what will happen next. While it is wholly inappropriate to engage in wild conjecture about the King's private health matters and the palace has urged reporters not to go down that road, this is the sovereign we are talking about. But statistics tell us that cancer diagnoses have less successful outcomes the older we get and at 75, the King is just five years off the age when survival rates are at their lowest. Of course, everyone wants King Charles III to make a full recovery - even the Australian Republican Movement sent well wishes - and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's comment that the cancer has been "caught early" is very welcome news. Whatever happens next, the consequences are significant in both the short and long term. While Buckingham Palace trying to play down the King's cancer diagnosis - their opaque version of transparency revealed the health issue, but not the type of cancer nor the required treatment - there is a flaw in the royal "keep calm and carry on" credo.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |