Anti-monarchy protesters booed outside UK parliament
London, United Kingdom (AFP) – Two anti-monarchy protesters were booed by crowds opposite parliament in central London on Monday, as King Charles III made his maiden address to lawmakers inside.
The pair held aloft signs saying “End feudalism”, “Abolish the monarchy” and “Not my king” — as the new monarch addressed lawmakers.
One of the protesters, who did not give his name, called the principle of hereditary power “absolutely abhorrent” in the modern age.
“You can’t have any philosophical or moral justification for one family having political power like that just by virtue of their birth,” he said.
“That’s the fundamental issue,” he added.
The protesters’ gripes centred around the amount of taxpayers’ money the monarch receives each year to fund the royal family’s official duties.
The annual allowance from the government — the Sovereign Grant — amounted to almost £86 million ($101 million) in the financial year 2020-21.
It is calculated at 15 percent of the profits of the Crown Estate, a huge portfolio of land, property and other assets that belongs to the ruling monarch but is independently managed.
The second protester also highlighted an ancient convention known as “king’s consent” whereby the monarch is consulted whenever proposed legislation could affect the crown’s interests.
She called it “his hidden power to change laws,” she said.
“He’s a king without consent, and that’s not right,” she added.
The woman was later seen on video posted by London’s Evening Standard newspaper being led away by police holding her signs nearer to parliament.
The public response to Charles’ accession around Britain since the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth II last week has been largely positive.
But two people were arrested in Edinburgh on Monday during a procession of her coffin.
A 52-year-old and 22-year-old were arrested “in connection with a breach of the peace” near the route taken by a hearse carrying Elizabeth II’s body and senior royals, Scottish police said in a statement.
Video images from the scene showed a young man shouting “you’re a sick old man” at Prince Andrew before being violently pulled from behind.
A woman was also on Sunday for a suspected breach of the peace, a low-level public order offence in Britain.
