As Britain finds itself in national gridlock ahead of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral on Monday, it grapples with an uncomfortable conundrum: what should, and what shouldn’t, be canceled out of respect for the monarch?
Sporting and cultural events have been almost entirely suspended on Monday, the day of the UK’s first state funeral since Winston Churchill’s death in 1965. Museums, banks, businesses, shops and schools will also close in what is today Bank holiday.
But while these closures were mostly expected following the death of a monarch whose reign lasted seven decades, others have had more serious consequences – leaving some Britons shocked and angry.
Non-urgent appointments at hospitals across the country have been postponed due to staff shortages, adding to an already unprecedented waiting list for healthcare in Britain. Holidaymakers have seen their accommodation plans scuppered, travelers are being warned that flights will be grounded to avoid noise over London and funeral homes and food banks are bracing for disruption.
“It’s sad that the Queen has gone, but letting someone get worse is not helpful,” photographer Dan Lewsey, who told CNN at his mother’s check-up after her cancer diagnosis was postponed by a hospital in Shropshire, in west of England. “Normal life should be able to continue to some extent.”
The confusion reflects a country that has struggled with how best to honor the Queen. Despite decades of planning for Elizabeth II’s death, the government has refused to issue firm guidelines on what should and should not be done during the period of national mourning, leaving many decisions to providers.
This has led to very different approaches from companies and services. Britons have been told not to cycle or go without weather updates. Some, such as a supermarket’s decision to turn down the noise from its checkout beep, have been ridiculed online. But others have left people worrying about basic provisions.
“Closing essential services such as food banks, scheduled hospital appointments and funeral services is disrespectful to the Queen. It’s a sign of disrespect to the British public,” said Shola Mos-Shogbamimu, political activist and author of This Is Why I Resist.
The suspension of certain medical treatments caused widespread concern. “It is of course very sad that the Queen has died and a funeral is important, but we are asking people to forego potentially life-saving medical treatment for the aristocracy,” Marcia Allison, 39, told PA Media after learning she was 69. -The old father had seen a dentist appointment canceled on Monday.
“It is despicable to ask people like him to lose their teeth for an unelected head of state in the 21st century. This is not democratic,” he told the news agency.
The holidays are affecting staff across the country and have left many hospitals unable to fulfill their appointments. Aneurin Bevan University Health Board in south-east Wales apologized for the “unavoidable disruption”, telling patients it was “postponing all scheduled appointments and clinics” until Monday.
It comes at a particularly difficult time for patients. Britain’s National Health Service is under severe pressure. a record 6.8 million people are waiting for treatment, according to the latest figures from the British Medical Association (BMA), and there are concerns that the queue could swell further from Monday’s cancellations.
The BMA’s junior doctor representation arm also expressed its anger that the Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists (RCOG) delayed the exams on Monday. “Junior Doctors spend months revising these exams. Delays cause a significant psychological cost, as well as potentially affecting the progress of training,” the BMA said.
An NHS spokesman said: “As with any public holiday, NHS staff will be working to ensure that urgent and emergency services, including urgent dental and GP appointments, are available – and patients come to liaising with their local trusts, if necessary, regarding existing supplies.”
But while missed hospital appointments are usually the result of sudden staff shortages, many companies have also decided to cancel their regular services on Monday, often leaving customers in the dark.
Center Parcs, a company that runs several resorts across the UK, attracted criticism across the country on Wednesday after it announced plans to close on Monday, leaving visitors without accommodation.
The company has since reversed its plan to turn guests away from sites for a day, but will still not allow customers to arrive and check in to their accommodation on Monday, meaning some have been forced to find alternative places to short stay.
“It’s come out of the blue,” said David Grierson, 33, who had plans to ride the length of England this weekend and arrive at Center Parcs in Cumbria on Monday. “Now we have to find some additional accommodation … we are seeing upwards of £200 ($230) a night (and) around the Center Parcs area, availability is very poor.
“It’s a little bit out of proportion what they’ve done,” Grierson told CNN. “I would totally understand if they made some changes on the day, but to lock people out when they were already on the road has made us dizzy.”
Center Parcs told CNN: “We believe this was the right thing to do and this decision was made out of respect and to allow as many of our colleagues as possible to be part of this historic moment.” A company spokesman added that messages sent by the company’s social media account warning guests to “stay indoors” on Monday were “in error”.
“Visitors are of course allowed to come out of their shelters,” the spokesman clarified.
Public spaces are meanwhile dealing with the question of how and how not to honor the monarch. Images and tributes to the Queen are almost impossible to avoid in British cities. bus stops, train stations, shop windows and billboards bear her face. During her lifetime, the Queen became perhaps the most recognizable woman who ever lived – yet she was even more visible in death.
Some tributes, however, felt more natural than others. Guinea Pig Awareness Week was postponed to avoid clashing with the monarch’s funeral. A picture of the late Queen surrounded by cans of baked beans in a British supermarket has sparked mild ridicule online. Another supermarket chain, Morrisons, confirmed to CNN that it had reduced the volume of the “beeps” produced when an item is scanned at the checkout, out of respect for the late Elizabeth II.
Many companies and groups have joined Center Parcs in issuing complex advice. British Cycling has apologized after “strongly” advising people not to ride their bikes during the state funeral. has now scrubbed that advice from its websites, admitting that “we were wrong”.
The government informed companies that “there is no obligation for organizations to suspend their activities during the period of National Mourning. Depending on the nature and location of their business and the tone of events planned, some businesses may want to consider closing or postponing events, especially on the day of the State Funeral.”
Confusion has also surrounded the other funerals to be held across the country on the day the Queen will be laid to rest. “If a selected crematorium or cemetery has decided to close, for whatever reason, funeral directors work with families to find another date, or another venue, that they are happy with,” the National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD) said. in a statement.
“NAFD and other funeral trade bodies have instructed their members that these decisions should be guided by the needs and wishes of bereaved families,” the group said. He added that reduced public transport links during the holiday could prevent visitors from getting to funerals.
Flights will also be affected. Heathrow Airport, one of the world’s largest transport hubs, announced it would cancel some flights on Monday to reduce noise pollution over London on the day of the funeral. The airport previously suspended flights for two hours on Wednesday to “ensure silence” during a ceremonial procession of the Queen’s coffin.
“Most court and tribunal hearings will not take place” on Monday, the country’s court and tribunal service said. There will be no test drives. And food banks have been forced to shuffle staff to stay open. The food bank in Wimbledon, south-west London, initially said it would close, but later clarified it would be able to operate on Monday thanks to “overwhelming support” from last-minute volunteers.
Monday’s funeral will be watched by millions of Britons. It will be the “biggest single policing event” ever carried out by London’s Metropolitan Police, the force’s Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stuart Cundy said during a media briefing on Friday.
But it has left non-event companies at a loose end as they balance their services and staff with the momentous nature of the Queen’s death.
“This is a moment of great national importance, whatever your opinion of the monarchy,” Grierson said,…
