King Charles III dedicated much of his time as Britain’s longest-serving heir-apparent to activism, particularly on environmental issues, prompting speculation about whether his political activity will end following his accession.
“He’s got involved in all sorts of quasi-political areas and expressed his views, and he’s launched charities to further his views, and that has made him pretty unpopular,” said royal biographer Penny Junor.
Charles sparked controversy in 2015 when it was revealed he had sent private letters to government ministers demanding action on issues such as military readiness and fish protection.
Dubbed the “black spider memos” due to his sprawling handwriting, the cache of 27 letters included a 2004 missive lobbying then-prime minister Tony Blair to cull badgers and ignore “the badger lobby” in the United Kingdom.
Britain’s Prince Charles, left, greets the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau ahead of their bilateral meeting during the Cop26 summit in Glasgow, Scotland, Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021.
Jane Barlow/Pool Photo via AP
As King, Charles is constitutionally required to remain strictly neutral on political matters.
“He won’t be an ‘Activist King’ and frankly, he can’t be, because it’s not the job. The job is to advise, to encourage and to warn,” said royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliam, referencing Walter Bagehot’s famous quote in The English Constitution in 1867.
Asked during a 2018 BBC documentary whether he would continue speaking his mind once he became king, Charles replied: “No. I won’t. I’m not that stupid. I do realize that it is a separate exercise being sovereign.”
But opinion polls show Britons are divided over whether Charles should continue fighting for his beliefs as King, with just over half wanting him to continue to speak out.
“There are clear age differences here,” said Tanya Abraham, research director at the polling firm YouGov.
“You can see that younger people feel that there should be more openness, more liberal-mindedness when it comes to the royal family.”
