I didn’t watch yesterday’s Christmas speech by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for no other reason that it never occurred to me to watch it. I’ve nothing against the old girl and – whisper it – I actually like two of her grandchildren rather a lot, those two being Princes Harry and William. The Queen apparently said some stuff about the country uniting and coming together. I could say something sarcastic like “Good luck with that one, love” as we tear ourselves apart in the reckless pursuit of a self-harming Brexit, not to mention the vast fissures that have opened up in terms of inequality and the return of homelessness and poverty. But I am pretty sure she means it.
The Queen does take seriously her largely ceremonial role as head of state. Whilst she has no power as such, many look at the monarchy as offering stability and continuity across our not very green and pleasant land, in times of division and crisis. And given that her family will have very clear memories of when Europe was at war, whatever her politics, she must surely view the current unhappy state of our country as highly upsetting.
So, yes, I accept that the Queen is very sincere in what she says and I find myself, as a natural republican, finding more sympathy with her than some on the hard left who have used her Christmas message to attack her. It is hard to escape the social networks which complain about a billionaire royal expressing concern about the state of the nation, as if having a monarch is a barrier to equality and fairness, as if you cannot have one without the other.
Oddly enough, from 1997 to 2010, when Labour was in government, homelessness and rough sleeping was dramatically reduced and almost eradicated. During that time, the royal family were still there, slowly modernising, and becoming more relevant to the modern world. There was no real conflict between the monarchists and republicans. There was no false choice between having a royal family and caring for the less well off. The country was able to do both.
Whatever we pay for the royal family, it represents a pin-prick in our national expenditure. You can argue, under the false choice narrative, that this money would be better spent on homeless hostels or whatever, but you could argue that so many other areas of public expenditure are more or less important than others.
Leave the queen alone. Yes, the monarchy is a slightly weird, eccentric throwback to another day but getting shot of them sends to me the message that you should be careful what you wish for. President Trump? President Jeremy Corbyn? President Boris Johnson? No thanks.
We can have it all if we want. We can end homelessness and rough sleeping if we want it badly enough and we can have our royal family too.
