Prince William is charting a different course from his father, King Charles III, by opting out of a meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at Balmoral this summer.
There was a longstanding royal tradition of King Charles since the reign of the late Queen Elizabeth II. This involved the Royal Family’s annual visit to Balmoral, and they also extended an invitation to the Prime Minister. Before ascending the throne, the 70-year-old royal himself often participated in this customary meeting between the monarch and the Prime Minister. However, there was no apparent interaction with Prince William when Mr Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murthy, headed to the Highlands for their visit this year. Notably, the Court Circular did not mention any meeting between the Prince of Wales and the Conservative Party’s Prime Minister in their official record of royal engagements. The absence of this meeting could be attributed to Prince William’s need to return to Windsor in preparation for his young children’s return to school following the summer holidays. Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis are embarking on Year Six, Year Four, and Year One, respectively, at Lambrook School in Berkshire. Meanwhile, Mr Sunak joined the Royals at church on Sunday. It is believed to be the first time in at least five years that a Prime Minister has attended church near Balmoral with a monarch.