During Saturday night’s GB News, host Andrew Doyle spoke with guests Alice Grant, Lembit Öpik and Dr Arthur Cassidy about Prince Charles’ latest speech telling the Commonwealth they can ditch the monarchy if they want to. The guests seemed to clash when discussing the topic, with Alice branding the royal’s move “insensitive”.
The debate came after the Prince of Wales, who is the future head of the Commonwealth, said in a speech the process can happen “calmly and without rancour”.
The royal made the comments during the opening ceremony of a summit of Commonwealth prime ministers and presidents in Rwanda.
“The Commonwealth contains within it, countries that have had constitutional relationships with my family, some that continue to do so, and increasingly those that have had none,” Prince Charles said in his speech.
“I want to say clearly, as I have said before, that each member’s Constitutional arrangement, as republic or monarchy, is purely a matter for each member country to decide.
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“The benefit of long life brings me the experience that arrangements such as these can change, calmly and without rancour.”
The Prince of Wales’ comments has sparked a division among the public, and it was the hot topic of discussion on Andrew Doyle’s show.
“He knows that he’s not a popular figure in the way the Queen was around the globe. I mean, he’s not, is he?” Andrew began.
Launching into a rant, Alice replied: “I mean, things like this… statements like these is a contributing to his popularity.
As he mimicked the voice of Prince Charles, Lembik added: “‘The arrangments are purely a matter for me to decide’ then everyone would have gone crazy.”
“It is also about respect for the office and respect to what the Queen has been working towards for decades,” Alice interrupted.
“She has given her life and he’s just gone and actively undermined everything she has been doing.”
The discussion got heated as Lembik weighed in: “You can’t say, ‘You can bog off if you want to leave’ I am going to tell you what to do, that would be the alternative.”
“There is a way to say, we can be respectful to those…” Alice added. “But ultimately this does boil down to what the people want.
“Generally the people love the British Monarchy.”
“I agree with what Alice is saying here,” Dr Cassidy told the host. “Because the Monarch is the Monarch and she will know what she wants Charles to do.
“With great respect, most of these people do really want to withhold that Monarchial link to Great Britain.”
GB News airs weekdays from 6am.