After the information of Queen Elizabeth’s optimistic COVID-19 coronavirus take a look at on Sunday, folks expressed concern in regards to the well being of the extraordinarily common sovereign, in addition to about the way forward for the monarchy, which has been combating scandals main and minor.
According to Buckingham Palace, if the queen must droop her official duties due to sickness or as a result of she is overseas, two or extra counselors of state can act on her behalf.
These counselors embrace the sovereign’s partner — which doesn’t apply to the queen, as her husband, Prince Philip, died final yr — and the following 4 folks within the line of succession, who’re appointed after they flip 21. The 4 counselors are presently Prince Charles, Prince Andrew, Prince William and Prince Harry.
But royal specialists say that amongst them, solely Prince Charles and Prince William had been prone to take up some duties.
Prince Andrew was stripped of public duties and navy titles after a lawsuit accusing him of sexual assault was allowed to proceed. He has since settled.
Peter Hunt, a proper royal correspondent for the BBC, wrote on Twitter that the “public won’t stomach Prince Andrew stepping up.”
And Prince Harry will not be in Britain, having moved his household to California.
Victoria Howard, a royal skilled and the founding father of the information web site The Crown Chronicles, mentioned that Harry “is having his own issue,” together with his and his household’s safety. “I think he wouldn’t come back,” she mentioned.
This previous week, London’s Metropolitan Police introduced an investigation right into a charity led by Prince Charles. He has denied any data of the alleged crimes and Ms. Howard mentioned that until the police found any consciousness or crime, the investigation wouldn’t hamper his capability to carry out royal duties.
After the announcement of the queen’s an infection, Buckingham Palace issued a sequence of reassurances about her well being and talent to work. The palace mentioned in a press release that she was experiencing solely delicate signs and was going to “continue light duties.” Shortly after the announcement of the optimistic take a look at, the palace mentioned that the queen had despatched a congratulatory message to the British curling groups, after the ladies’s workforce secured a gold medal and the boys took silver on the Winter Olympics in Beijing.
Despite the encouraging indicators, the COVID-19 coronavirus an infection added new considerations in regards to the well being of the queen, who’s 95 and just lately celebrated the seventieth anniversary of her accession to the throne.
Appearing with a cane this week, she joked with guests about her impeded motion.
Robert Jobson, a royal biographer, mentioned he was assured that no alternative could be needed for the queen as a result of Buckingham Palace mentioned she had solely delicate signs. If her scenario had been critical, he mentioned, “they would have just said she had contracted Covid.”
But he added that given her age, some worries remained.
“If any 95-year-old, nearly 96, contracts Covid,” Mr. Jobson mentioned, “it’s a cause of some concern.”