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King Charles’ challenge for the environment: reception at the Château
King Charles III will host a reception at Buckingham Palace ahead of the Cop27 conference which he will not attend. It therefore seems that the new Sovereign has decided to only partially listen to the advice of his prime ministers, who asked him not to expose himself on the occasion of the important event for global climate problems.
As the Daily Mail reports, Carlo will diplomatically circumvent the ban imposed on him by Liz Truss and which new Prime Minister Sunak later reaffirmed. Buckingham Palace has said the king will hold a reception on Friday, the day before the UN climate conference in Egypt.
The official statement said the banquet “will bring together over 200 international business leaders, policy makers and NGOs to celebrate the end of the UK Presidency of COP26 and look forward to the COP27 summit in Egypt”. A few names of illustrious guests are already circulating, including the American envoy for the climate John Kerry and Prime Minister Sunak himself, invited during the evening to “say a few words”.
King Charles is not giving up on COP27: he will first address world leaders
Since he will not be traveling to Egypt for the start of COP27, King Charles III will therefore address world leaders in preview during his official reception. Carlo is considered a pioneer and an absolute forerunner of attention to environmental causes, which he was already talking about in unsuspected times. During COP26, he established himself as one of the key figures and pledged to speak personally with key leaders.
But on this occasion, Downing Street said it believed it was “not the right occasion” for the king to visit Egypt. The choice, also supported by the new Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, was described as “shameful”. The British government is indeed accused of sidelining green issues, neglecting a matter of great urgency for the planet and for the country.
King Charles III, on the other hand, seems to be veering in the opposite direction even though he will not ultimately visit Egypt. Perhaps also the participation of Sunak, who should attend the conference, which will be held from November 6th. The United Kingdom, indeed, should be present in one way or another for a “handover” which means a lot from a formal point of view. In the meantime, the eyes of politics, and especially of the opposition, are trained on the reception at Buckingham Palace, which could hold important twists.