On Monday afternoon, it was
revealed that the Queen will miss the State Opening of Parliament for
the first time in decades due to mobility issues. The future heirs, Prince
Charles and Prince William will instead go in her place, with Charles
reading out her speech on her behalf – but there will be a noticeable
absence, the Duchess of Cambridge.
While the Princes will be
accompanied by the Duchess of Cornwall, Kate will be miles away in Manchester,
attending the official opening of the Manchester Arena bombing memorial ahead of
the fifth anniversary of the terror attack. The mother-of-three will join bereaved
families at a private ceremony. Prince William will join her later in the day.
On Monday, Buckingham Palace
said in a statement: “The Queen continues to experience episodic mobility
problems, and in consultation with her doctors has reluctantly decided that she
will not attend the State Opening of Parliament tomorrow.
“At Her Majesty’s
request, and with the agreement of the relevant authorities, The Prince of
Wales will read The Queen’s Speech on Her Majesty’s behalf, with The Duke
of Cambridge also in attendance.”
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| Prince William will attend the State Opening of Parliament and will later head to Manchester to join Kate |
A new Letters Patent
authorized by the Queen was issued to cover the State Opening delegating to
Counsellors of State the royal function of opening a new session of Parliament.
In this instance, it enables
Charles and Prince William to jointly exercise that function. No other
functions have been delegated by the Queen.
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The Queen will miss the event for the first time in decades
On Tuesday, the Prince of
Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall will be in their usual seats, while the Duke
of Cambridge will sit opposite Camilla. It will be the Duke’s first time
attending.
The Queen is still understood
to be taking part in a number of private engagements later in the week.
Her Majesty is thought to have
a busy diary at Windsor, with a call with Australia undertaken on Monday, and a
planned virtual Privy Council and phone audience with the Prime Minister on
Wednesday.
