King Charles to hold royal summit to decide future of monarchy and William and Kate will ‘be at the heart’
21 August 2023, 12:03 | Updated: 21 August 2023, 14:01
King Charles is set to invite William and Kate to a historic royal summit to discuss the future of the monarchy.
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The King is planning to hold a royal summit to set out the future of The Commonwealth and establish key objectives for the upcoming year.
King Charles will arrive at Balmoral on Monday, where the summit is expected to be held on a date that is yet to be confirmed.
The King, Queen Camilla, William and Kate are all set to be in attendance.
A source close to the King said of his objectives: “His Majesty is very clear. The Commonwealth must be at the very heart of his reign. He sees it as his utmost duty to fulfil the sincere wish of his late mother, that one of his central roles must be to ensure not only the survival but the robustness (of the organisation).”
It is expected the King will lay out his goals for the next year, which will include the discussion of foreign travel, engagements and key aims.
Keeping the Commonwealth together is said to be high on the King’s agenda, which he hopes to do by using William and Kate’s “star quality”.
The King sees the Prince and Princess of Wales’ roles as “being at the heart of cementing their own future and that of the monarchy at large”, a source at The Mirror said.
They also added that King Charles is eager to capitalise on the pair’s growing popularity, as well as “the Princess’ undoubted star quality”.
The King and Queen will tour Kenya this autumn, where the Charles “hopes to use the symbolism tied into his mother’s legacy to offer a hand of friendship, which might get harder as the years go by,” acording to a senior civil servant.
Canada and Australia are also said to be on his list of future travels, in line with requests from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
The goal of the King’s plans for the upcoming year have been described by senior officials at the Foreign Office as “gargantuan” - following what was described as a “disastrous” Caribbean tour by William and Kate last year.
One government insider said: “The Caribbean tour wasn’t a complete catastrophe, but it was a massive wake-up call. Simply turning up with a wave and a smile and a speech of friendship will not work any more.”
