Meeting of the Parliament

Meeting date: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Official Report 924KB pdf

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Coronation of King Charles III and The Queen

The next item of business is a debate on motion S6M-08864, in the name of Humza Yousaf, on the coronation of King Charles III and the Queen.

14:19  

Just less than two weeks ago, the stone of destiny began its journey to London for the coronation of Their Majesties King Charles and Queen Camilla. I attended the ceremony at Edinburgh Castle that marked that occasion in my role as Keeper of the Great Seal, and on Saturday, I represented Scotland at the coronation.

As everyone who watched it will know, the coronation ceremony and the pageantry surrounding it were rooted in tradition, but it is also the case that some of the traditions have been updated to reflect modern values. For example, the inclusion of a multifaith element in the ceremony was a particularly welcome change.

That mix of the old and the new was also evident in wider celebrations in Scotland. The tenor and scale of the festivities has been different from previous coronations, but in many parts of the country people still came together to watch the proceedings live with family, friends and neighbours.

Over the past few days there have been street parties, afternoon teas, special concerts and, of course, some religious services, too. Across Scotland, people have taken the time to perform acts of service in line with the coronation theme of helping out. I joined some of them yesterday when I helped to pack food at the Whitfield community larder.

There will, of course, be more events later this year, when His Majesty is presented with the honours of Scotland at a ceremony in St Giles cathedral, and during royal week in July the Scottish Government will take the opportunity to present Their Majesties with coronation gifts on behalf of the people of Scotland. In doing so, we will be marking a further important constitutional milestone, but we will also be symbolising the respect and good will that is felt by many people in Scotland for Their Majesties personally.

That good will has been built up over many years. Her Majesty Queen Camilla has spoken often about her family’s Scottish roots and, indeed, her affinity to Scotland. She undertook her very first public engagement here, when opening a school playground in Ballater back in 2005, and since then she has forged strong ties with communities across the country—not least in her role as chancellor of the University of Aberdeen.

His Majesty’s affections for Scotland, and especially for Balmoral, are well known. He, too, carried out his first royal duties here, in 1965. The then 16-year-old Prince Charles met students at a garden party at Holyrood Palace, and in the decades since has continued to serve through his patronage of many Scottish charities and institutions and—perhaps most notably of all—through his work with the Prince’s Trust. It is his work with the Prince’s Trust that I want especially to highlight in this speech.

There are, of course, various views of the monarchy in Scotland, but the incredible work that the Prince’s Trust has done with young people over many years right across the United Kingdom, including here in Scotland, is indisputable. As I am sure is true of many members, I have seen the impact of that work at first hand.

In 2019, I visited the Prince’s Trust Wolfson centre in Glasgow and had the enormous pleasure of meeting some of the young people whose lives the trust had transformed. Every year in Scotland, more than 8,000 disadvantaged young people benefit from support that the Prince’s Trust provides through its various programmes. They get opportunities to meet new people, learn new skills and build their confidence, and as a result, they receive vital help in overcoming particularly challenging barriers, and of course, in realising their potential.

Since it was established, the Prince’s Trust has helped to improve the lives of many people across the country. Its work is an important and enduring aspect of His Majesty’s contribution to our society here in Scotland, but the role that he has played in our national life spans many years and goes well beyond the work that he has done with the Prince’s Trust.

As Prince of Wales, His Majesty was there for us when Scotland faced dark times in the aftermaths of Piper Alpha, the Lockerbie bombing and the Clutha helicopter crash. He has also shared with us many special moments, from the opening with Diana, the Princess of Wales, of the 1988 Glasgow garden festival, to the launch of the 26th United Nations climate change conference of the parties—COP26—when he spoke very powerfully about the need for us all collectively to tackle the climate emergency.

Like his mother, His Majesty has also been a good friend to this Parliament. He was present at our official opening in 1999, he joined us for our anniversary celebrations 20 years later, and in 2021 he attended for a third time for the kirking of the Parliament, which is the multifaith service that we hold at the start of each parliamentary session.

Last year, His Majesty addressed us in this very chamber for the first time, a few days after his mother’s death. He told us then that he was taking up his duties

“with thankfulness for all that Scotland has given me, with resolve to seek always the welfare of our country and its people, and with wholehearted trust in your goodwill and good counsel as we take forward that task together.”

It continues to be the case that there are different views in this chamber and throughout the country about the institution of the monarchy, but the commitment that His Majesty has made to serve the people is one that we all share. We have seen both Their Majesties demonstrate that commitment over many years, so whatever our constitutional views are, I think that it is right that the Parliament mark this moment by wishing them well. In doing so, we congratulate Their Majesties King Charles and Queen Camilla on their coronation, we thank them for their continuing service to Scotland, and we commit ourselves to working with them and helping them in discharging the great responsibilities that they hold.

I move,

That the Parliament congratulates Their Majesties The King and The Queen on the occasion of Their Coronation; expresses its gratitude for Their Majesties’ public service to Scotland, and affirms the deep respect that is held for Their Majesties in Scotland.

14:26  

It is a great privilege to speak on behalf of the Scottish Conservatives in celebrating the coronation of Their Majesties King Charles III and Queen Camilla. It was an even greater privilege to witness the historic event at Westminster abbey in person on Saturday. Just over 2,000 guests were in the abbey for the two-hour service. Our own royal family, heads of state from around the world, members of European royal families, politicians and celebrities were there.

There were also 450 British empire medal recipients in the congregation. Among them were John Anderson from Fraserburgh, who received his BEM in 2020 for his community work during the pandemic, and Mary Nelson from Forres, who received her award in 2021 for the outstanding work that she had done for the Moray Fresh Start charity.

Scotland was also extremely well represented in the ceremony itself, by the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Bishop of Moray, Ross and Caithness and the Lord Lyon King of Arms, who I am delighted to see with us in the chamber this afternoon.

On Saturday, those of us who were lucky enough to be in the abbey, and millions across the United Kingdom and around the world, were witnesses to the crowning of our new monarch. That event has not happened in this country for 70 years. It reflected rituals and traditions that, in some cases, date as far back as the formation of Scotland and England as nations, and it included objects such as St Edward’s chair and the stone of destiny, which have been associated with coronations north and south of the border for hundreds of years.

For most of us, we had seen such an event only in black and white footage or had read about it in books. It was made real before our very eyes. However, for all that we could see the weight of history among the grandeur, rousing music and pageantry of the moment, the message and the promise from the coronation ceremony and the celebrations over the weekend was a simple one: service. Indeed, that was the theme of the very first words from the King during the coronation. Replying to Samuel Strachan, His Majesty said:

“I come not to be served but to serve.”

That is service to our country and the Commonwealth, and service to all their people, regardless of their background and faith, and service to our natural world. Through that promise, His Majesty is continuing with the ideals and values of monarchy that were so resolutely upheld by his late mother over the long decades of her reign, but he is also showing a vision of the modern monarchy that he intends to lead. As he said on the day after he became monarch,

“wherever you may live in the United Kingdom, or in the Realms and territories across the world, and whatever may be your background or beliefs, I shall endeavour to serve you with loyalty, respect and love, as I have throughout my life.”

That is a concept of service that encompassed the events of the whole weekend.

The big lunch on Sunday was about bringing people together to celebrate community and tackle loneliness. The big help out on Monday was about getting more people involved in volunteering in their area. Last night, it was estimated that 6 million people had taken part in the big help out. That figure is expected to increase when the final numbers are known. It has been reported that almost 8 million people have said that they will, as a result of that celebration, be more likely to volunteer and help out. That is just one of the positive legacies from an incredible weekend.

As we look to the years ahead, we see a monarchy that has renewed its promise and commitment to the British people. As our country changes with the passing of time, the monarchy provides a tangible and constant link to our past and heritage. Yet, as we saw with the coronation weekend, the monarchy is not fixed in history; it changes and evolves to reflect our whole country’s modern values.

Where once the monarch would have been regarded as the defender of the faith, His Majesty pledged to defend all faiths. That promise was proudly underscored by the presence at his coronation of religious leaders from all faiths.

His Majesty is committed to promoting the inclusivity and diversity of our modern United Kingdom. With our country facing difficult and challenging times, the King has committed to putting service at the heart of his reign.

We in the Conservatives wish Their Majesties a long, happy and healthy reign. I repeat the words that we as a congregation said on Saturday. Long live King Charles. God save the King.

14:31  

I am delighted to put on record my heartfelt congratulations to their Royal Highnesses King Charles and Queen Camilla on their coronation. Like others, I was honoured to attend the ceremony in Westminster abbey at the weekend. It was a great privilege to witness history being made.

The coronation was incredible but, in many ways, what it meant to so many was even more incredible. Of course I mean those who were part of celebrations that took place across the country, but I mean more than that. Across the UK friends, neighbours and communities came together to mark this historic moment—from those at vibrant street parties and casual get-togethers to those who simply enjoyed a long weekend with loved ones. Those communities are bound together not by ceremony or duty but by common interest and friendship.

I also mean the volunteers on the day of the coronation. I had the great pleasure of speaking to a number of them and in particular to young scouts. I could see and hear how much the experience meant to them and their families.

Charities are close to King Charles’s heart. For all the charities that were represented at the coronation, it felt like a recognition of their efforts and an acknowledgement of the vital services that they provide. To give one example of that, I was struck when I spoke to the chief executive of Maggie’s. Maggie’s centres across the country provide an invaluable service to people who are undergoing cancer treatment and their families. Countless other charities were represented at the coronation.

Millions around the world watched with great affection for our royal family and our country. Such historic moments provide a chance to take stock of what our country is and what it should always strive to be—to not only cherish our country’s history but look forward to our future and consider the values that we want our country to represent and the role that we want to play in the world.

In the new King and Queen, we can see the values of public service and duty. We saw all those values lived every single day in the life of Queen Elizabeth. The world changed immeasurably during her extraordinary reign, but her duty, her integrity, her warmth and her service to others never wavered for a moment. She demonstrated strength, leadership and compassion when our country needed that most. As we enter this new era, I know that the new King and Queen will continue that extraordinary legacy and uphold those timeless values.

King Charles had to swear an oath to be the protector of the faith, but he also committed to being a protector of the faiths, which is a recognition of our rich culture, history and diversity. I am sure that he will strive to reign with the same wisdom, compassion, integrity and justice and with the values of unity, compassion and community for our country. I hope that all of us across this country share those values in building a brighter and fairer future.

I wish the King and Queen a long and happy reign. God save the King.

14:34  

It gives me great pleasure to offer on behalf of the Scottish Liberal Democrats our warmest congratulations to King Charles III and Queen Camilla on the occasion of their coronation.

If I am honest, I was not always sure what I thought about the institution of monarchy, but the acts of commemoration that marked the passing of Queen Elizabeth II last September reminded me of the example that she set. The memory of her steadfast devotion to the people of these islands reassured me of the value of having a steadying politically neutral influence at the top of our system of Government.

My position, and the position of a great many of our citizens, was summarised succinctly in the words of another who was sat in that ancient abbey on Saturday. In a letter to his fans, who were incredulous at his decision to attend the coronation, legendary Australian musician Nick Cave wrote:

“I am not a monarchist, nor am I a royalist, nor am I an ardent republican for that matter; what I am also not is so spectacularly incurious about the world and the way it works, so ideologically captured, so damn grouchy, as to refuse an invitation to what will more than likely be the most important historical event in the UK of our age. Not just the most important, but the strangest, the weirdest.”

For many people, the coronation was all those things.

There is something unique and strangely comforting about those rights and rituals that have spanned 1,000 years. The second Elizabethan era was marked by the constancy of our late Queen’s reign. Thanks to her, the institution of monarchy is now steeped in the tradition of public service. Indeed, as we have heard from Douglas Ross, the first words that the new King spoke on Saturday were:

“I come not to be served, but to serve.”

In the example of King Charles’s late mother, we can see the promise in those words, and it to his credit that he has sought to emulate that example. Indeed, the King and Queen have already exhibited huge commitment to public service in their previous lives. Combined, they are patrons of more than 900 charities. King Charles has a long and proud history of supporting youth work, something that is very dear to me, and of championing environmentalism. It was he who first publicly warned of the effects of plastic pollution, more than 50 years ago. He also deserves credit for turning down the offer of having Heathrow terminal 5 named after him because of the importance of tackling aviation for the climate emergency.

Our new Queen is also known for her public service, and Her Majesty has done extremely worthwhile work, particularly advocating for the safety and protection of women and girls. In 2013, she established an initiative for providing sexual assault referral centres with wash bags filled with toiletries. That scheme now operates throughout the country.

I wish them well. I hope that, in the years ahead, they will continue to defend the values that make our country great. The first value is upholding democracy and free speech. We are a country that proudly finds disagreement on almost every topic. We should never be a country that seeks to stifle either side of that disagreement, as we saw in the troubling actions of the Metropolitan Police in London on Saturday when republican protesters were arrested.

Secondly, I hope that the King would want people to have confidence in the transparency of his reign. At present, as we have discussed before, the Crown consent procedure allows the monarch’s lawyers to flag concern about legislation and to request changes. My party has been clear that those details and interventions should be made public. Like all institutions, we have a right to know how legislative decisions are made. That is a cornerstone of our democracy.

We are a quirky people. Our traditions, eccentricities and humour are part of the rich composition that makes up the culture and identity of these islands. So well captured in the words of Nick Cave, Saturday marked a moment in our national story—a turning of the page—and I was very glad to have been a tiny part of that. God save the King.