Heir to the British throne Prince William is to shoulder more responsibilities as the public face of the UK monarchy in the absence of his father King Charles III.
The Prince of Wales returned to public duties on Wednesday, two days after it was announced that the king is undergoing treatment for cancer.
The prince carried out an investiture at Windsor Castle, in southern England, which is one of his regular duties, and will later attend the London Air Ambulance annual fund-raising gala in central London in his role as patron of the charity.
He presented more than 50 honours during the late morning ceremony, accidentally dropping a MBE medal he was giving to charity worker Suzanne Hutchinson
The prince quickly picked it up and pinned it to Ms Hutchinson, who was recognised for her services to children with congenital heart disease.
He was returning to official engagements three weeks after taking time off when his wife, Kate, Princess of Wales, underwent major abdominal surgery for an undisclosed condition.
The Princess of Wales, who was treated at the same hospital in central London and discharged the same day as the king, is expected to remain away from public duties until after Easter.
Their absence leaves Prince William, Queen Camilla and the Princess Royal, who carried out an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle on Tuesday, holding the fort alongside the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.
Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told The National the king’s illness exposes the “dangers” of slimming down a monarchy too much.
The British monarchy has lost key members in recent years after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan, stepped down from royal duties in early 2020.
Prince Andrew returned most of his titles and royal duties to the late queen, after facing a US civil sexual assault lawsuit, which he later paid millions to settle.
“It was never practical to slim [the monarchy] down too far,” Mr Fitzwilliams said.
“But remember what has happened with the Sussexes and with Andrew led to this. Some of this was not avoidable. Or at least you couldn’t plan in this way.
“This is all unprecedented”
Mr Fitzwilliams said there is nothing that can be done to immediately relieve the pressure on the family and its working members should not be slimmed down any further.
“Princess Anne already has a huge number of engagements.
“Prince William will undoubtedly be doing more. There’s no doubt about that. And also, there will be more pressure on the queen.
“She’s the king’s rock. They are soul mates. He will be very clearly reliant on her love and support.”
Mr Fitzwilliams said the family's spring and summer schedules will be very difficult to plan.
“Running a monarchy needs careful planning. And this is tricky, to put it mildly. It’s serious,” he added.
One silver lining to the king’s illness could be a reconciliation with Prince Harry, who has travelled to the UK from the US to see his father.
The king called both his sons to inform them of his condition ahead of the public announcement.
“We will have to wait and see, but obviously he’s very concerned and hopefully this will lead to some form of reconciliation,” said Mr Fitzwilliams.
“To what extent this occurs … these things take time. But there’s no doubt at all that in the circumstances, this may be a positive outcome.”
Prince Harry arrived in London from California on Tuesday afternoon, less than 24 hours after the announcement about the king’s health was made to the nation by Buckingham Palace.
However, their first face-to-face encounter for many months appeared to last for as little as 45 minutes before the king was flown by helicopter to Sandringham in Norfolk, east England.
Prince William is said to have grown closer to his father in the wake of his brother’s controversial interviews, documentary and memoir, which saw him launch a flurry of allegations at his family.
It is believed William and his brother will not meet during Harry's trip to London, with their long-running rift continuing.
As it stands there are no plans to appoint any Counsellors of State to act on behalf of Charles in his absence.
King Charles III through the years – in pictures
Counsellors can be authorised by the monarch to carry out all but the sovereign's most key roles, such as appointing a new prime minister, and must be selected from Charles' spouse Queen Camilla, Prince William, Prince Harry, Prince Andrew, Andrew's eldest daughter Princess Beatrice, Princess Anne and Prince Edward.
The “workaholic” king will carry on behind the scenes, dealing with the red boxes which contain his state business and official papers, say officials.
He will also hold his weekly audiences with the Prime Minister and monthly Privy Council meetings, which can both be done remotely.
The king and queen were expected to visit Canada in May, and Australia, New Zealand and Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in October.
But the illness raises the prospect that Prince William may have to deputise for the king, who is head of the Commonwealth, at the meeting, just as Charles did for the late queen.
Other trips could be postponed, depending on how the king's health progresses.
Forthcoming events that could see William playing a key role include the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey at the start of March and the 80th anniversary of D-Day in June.
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Results
6.30pm: Maiden Dh165,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: Celtic Prince, David Liska (jockey), Rashed Bouresly (trainer).
7.05pm: Conditions Dh240,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Commanding, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
7.40pm: Handicap Dh190,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Grand Argentier, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
8.15pm: Handicap Dh170,000 (D) 2,200m
Winner: Arch Gold, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson.
8.50pm: The Entisar Listed Dh265,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Military Law, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi.
9.25pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed Dh265,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Ibn Malik, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi.
10pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Midnight Sands, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
More on Quran memorisation:
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
RESULTS
Catchweight 82kg
Piotr Kuberski (POL) beat Ahmed Saeb (IRQ) by decision.
Women’s bantamweight
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) beat Cornelia Holm (SWE) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Omar Hussein (PAL) beat Vitalii Stoian (UKR) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Josh Togo (LEB) beat Ali Dyusenov (UZB) by unanimous decision.
Flyweight
Isaac Pimentel (BRA) beat Delfin Nawen (PHI) TKO round-3.
Catchweight 80kg
Seb Eubank (GBR) beat Emad Hanbali (SYR) KO round 1.
Lightweight
Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Ramadan Noaman (EGY) TKO round 2.
Lightweight
Alan Omer (GER) beat Reydon Romero (PHI) submission 1.
Welterweight
Juho Valamaa (FIN) beat Ahmed Labban (LEB) by unanimous decision.
Featherweight
Elias Boudegzdame (ALG) beat Austin Arnett (USA) by unanimous decision.
Super heavyweight
Maciej Sosnowski (POL) beat Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) by submission round 1.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The Orwell Prize for Political Writing
Twelve books were longlisted for The Orwell Prize for Political Writing. The non-fiction works cover various themes from education, gender bias, and the environment to surveillance and political power. Some of the books that made it to the non-fiction longlist include:
- Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War by Tim Bouverie
- Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me by Kate Clanchy
- Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez
- Follow Me, Akhi: The Online World of British Muslims by Hussein Kesvani
- Guest House for Young Widows: Among the Women of ISIS by Azadeh Moaveni
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
