“Regardless of Her Majesty’s personal views, it is the job of her private secretary to take these issues seriously and to investigate them and that’s precisely what is going on.”-unnamed Buckingham Palace source
In the Sunday Times Queen Elizabeth II expressed concerns she may be the last monarch of the U.K.
In a meeting with Prime Minister David Cameron she discussed the possible break up of the United Kingdom. So far this year, Scotland has been leading the charge for independence, with word that people in Wales are about to join in. The Queen’s recent visit to the Republic of Ireland was seen as an attempt to bring that independent country back under the control of the House of Windsor.
Elizabeth II (aka Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor) is especially concerned that Scotland might win its independence through the Parliament. Scotland and England formed a union in 1707, called the Act of Union. The Union came about as a result of economic sanctions by the English against Scotland, and bribery of Scottish officials. It is notable that many Scottish “commoners”, and even the lower clergy of the Church of Scotland, were openly opposed to such a union.
Scottish independence activist Charlie Veitch, called monarchies “…a parasite upon natural order and upon natural law because we are all created equal under the eyes of God, the universe, or whatever you believe in.”
Veitch went on to say: “The Queen, in a way, she is a ridiculous figure head of an old world order…we want to make sure that the new world does not have these old, elitist establishment controls that we saw in the past.”
The Commonwealth consists of United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent/Grenadines, Belize, Antigua/Barbuda and Saint Kitts/Nevis. (in the 1990s I met a few Canadian Army Sergeants who insisted the United States had been secretly brought back into the Commonwealth)
The United Kingdom consists of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Is the Queen just a figure head? Only when it comes to the Commonwealth as a whole, but, in the United Kingdom the Queen has real power: She is the Governor of the Church of England and Scotland. She is the Head of the Armed Forces with ultimate say in how the military is used; if she didn’t like British troops being sent on this War on Terror she can just wave her magic hand, and the Parliament would be forced to bring the troops home. She opens every yearly session of Parliament by dictating what should be discussed, in other words she sets the agenda. She is the one who signs new laws, not the Prime Minister.
And who pays for the expenses of the Royal Family? The taxpayers. Things like staffing, state visits, public engagements, and official entertainment are paid for with public money from funds called Grants in Aid, and Civil List (by making the Royal Wedding a public event they can legally charge the taxpayers for it).
You see, the rich don’t stay rich by spending their money, they spend your money!
Normally British taxpayers pay for Royal Weddings, but with the marriage of Kate and William the Royal Family recognized the financial sufferings of the people, and decided to pay for part of the wedding. The Middletons also paid for part of the wedding (they are “commoners” by title only, or lack of title). The British taxpayers still had to pay for security and clean up.
The fact that the taxpayers must legally pay for official expenses of the Royal Family (not the Royal’s personal expenses of course) is the reason rebels like Charlie Veitch call royals “parasites”. Basically the Royal Family is the ultimate welfare recipient.