Close X
Saturday, January 11, 2025
ADVT 
International

Queen Intervenes In Succession Plan, ‘Wishes’ Prince Charles Is Heir

IANS, 19 Apr, 2018 01:08 PM
    Queen Elizabeth II today appealed to Commonwealth leaders to appoint her son, Prince Charles, to succeed her as their head, making her first direct intervention into a succession plan for the 53-member grouping.
     
     
    The 91-year-old monarch, the Head of the Commonwealth, said it was her "sincere wish" that Prince Charles takes over "one day", as she opened the two-day Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in London, also attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
     
     
    The post of Head of Commonwealth is not hereditary and will not pass automatically to the 69-year-old Prince of Wales on the Queen's death.
     
     
    The 53 leaders, gathered at Buckingham Palace, are to make a decision on the succession tomorrow, the BBC quoted 10 Downing Street as saying.
     
     
    In her opening speech, the Queen described the group as "growing stronger year by year" and the world's "great convening powers", which would benefit from the stability to be offered by the royal family.
     
     
    "It is my sincere wish that the Commonwealth will continue to offer stability and continuity for future generations and will decide that one day the Prince of Wales will carry on the important work started by my father in 1949," the Queen said during her address at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) at Buckingham Palace.
     
     
    "By continuing to treasure and reinvigorate our associations and activities I believe we will secure a prosperous and more sustainable world for those who follow us," she said.
     
     
    Her intervention comes amid ongoing speculation over a successor to the monarch.
     
     
    Some experts have argued that it marks an opportunity for the organisation to distance itself from its colonial roots and appoint a non-royal to the role. Others, however, claim that it is the royal family that holds the grouping of former British colonies together.
     
     
    "It is to the incredible credit of the Queen and the royal family that it (Commonwealth) still exists, because without them it wouldn't. People have danced around the edges of it for too long," said Lord Marland, chairman of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC).
     
     
    The CHOGM in Britain will mark the last such summit to be hosted by the Queen, who has ruled out long-haul travel and therefore unlikely to travel to any future CHOGMs to be hosted by other member-states.
     
     
    A decision on succession will be taken collectively by the 53 heads of government of the Commonwealth and the subject is expected to be the central feature of deliberations when the leaders get together for the CHOGM leaders' retreat on Friday at the grand Waterloo Chamber of Windsor Castle.
     
     
    There is reportedly no general consensus over the Prince of Wales as the next Head of the Commonwealth, with India yet to confirm its stand on the matter.
     
     
    Prince Charles is reportedly keen to step into his mother's shoes but the decision will be up to the presidents and prime ministers representing the 53 member-countries, which will then be announced by the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Baroness Patricia Scotland.
     
     
    Besides the issue of the future of the Commonwealth, the Queen also spoke about the importance of intra-Commonwealth trade and protecting the world's oceans.
     
     
    "Here at Buckingham Palace in 1949 my father (King George VI) met the heads of government when they ratified the London declaration which made up the Commonwealth we know today, then comprising of just eight nations. Who would have guessed that a gathering of its member states would number 53 or comprise of 2.4 billion people," she said.
     
     
    In her opening remarks, British Prime Minister Theresa May thanked the Queen for her service to the organisation and told the leaders the summit would "take on some of the 21st century's biggest questions".
     
     
    "There have been difficulties, successes, controversies, but I believe wholeheartedly in the good that the Commonwealth can do," she said.
     
     
    Issues under discussion at the summit also include ocean conservation, cyber security, and trade between the countries.
     
     
    Gunners at St. James' Park near the palace ended the formal launch ceremony with a 53-gun salute in honour of all members of the Commonwealth, following which the leaders, including Prime Minister Modi, entered Lancaster House for the executive session of CHOGM.

    MORE International ARTICLES

    US Accuses Pakistan Of Playing 'Double Game' On Fighting Terrorism

    US Accuses Pakistan Of Playing 'Double Game' On Fighting Terrorism
    The US has accused Pakistan of playing a “double game” on fighting terrorism and asked Islamabad to take decisive action against militants operating from its soil to “earn” the American aid.

    US Accuses Pakistan Of Playing 'Double Game' On Fighting Terrorism

    My Nuclear Button Works: Donald Trump's Response To Kim Jong-Un

    My Nuclear Button Works: Donald Trump's Response To Kim Jong-Un
    US President Donald Trump on Wednesday boasted that his nuclear button is not just “much bigger and powerful” than the one North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un had but that it also worked.

    My Nuclear Button Works: Donald Trump's Response To Kim Jong-Un

    'What If We Have A Tamil PM?' Shashi Tharoor Opposes Bid To Make Hindi An Official UN Language

    'What If We Have A Tamil PM?' Shashi Tharoor Opposes Bid To Make Hindi An Official UN Language
    External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Congress leader Shashi Tharoor traded barbs in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday over making Hindi an official language at the United Nations.

    'What If We Have A Tamil PM?' Shashi Tharoor Opposes Bid To Make Hindi An Official UN Language

    Global Hindu Body Suspends Telugu Singer Ghazal Srinivas Over Allegations Of Sexual Abuse

    Global Hindu Body Suspends Telugu Singer Ghazal Srinivas Over Allegations Of Sexual Abuse
    Global Hindu Heritage Foundation and Save Temples Organisation have suspended Telugu singer Ghazal Srinivas as their brand ambassador following his arrest on charges of sexually harassing one of the women employees at its India office here.

    Global Hindu Body Suspends Telugu Singer Ghazal Srinivas Over Allegations Of Sexual Abuse

    Haridwar's Ghulam Askari Zaidi Keeps Yoga Flag Flying High In Afghanistan

    Haridwar's Ghulam Askari Zaidi Keeps Yoga Flag Flying High In Afghanistan
    A young yoga teacher from Haridwar is quietly making waves in Afghanistan, spreading the ancient Indian science of harmonisation of body, mind and spirit to a rising number of yoga enthusiasts in that country.

    Haridwar's Ghulam Askari Zaidi Keeps Yoga Flag Flying High In Afghanistan

    Change In H-1B Visa Regulations: Over 5 Lakh Indians In The US May Be Forced To Return

    Change In H-1B Visa Regulations: Over 5 Lakh Indians In The US May Be Forced To Return
    An estimated 500,000 to 750,000 Indian H-1B visa holders could be deported if the administration goes ahead with the proposal which is aligned with President Donald Trump’s “Buy American, Hire American” vision.

    Change In H-1B Visa Regulations: Over 5 Lakh Indians In The US May Be Forced To Return