While hundreds of thousands have queued for the Queen to lie in state at London’s Westminster Hall, some argue that despite their affection for Elizabeth II, the inclusion of her less popular son Charles means the end of the 1,000-year-old institution could be one step. closer. Pressure group Republic – the only organization campaigning exclusively for a democratic constitution for Britain – has put up posters across the country reading: “Make Elizabeth the Last #abolitionofthemonarchy”. The group says its members are not planning to protest the funeral on Monday, but will step up activity ahead of the coronation of King Charles III. Graham Smith, chief executive of Republic, told the Guardian: “We’ve been busy with our campaign over the last 10 days, gaining around a thousand new members this week. We also raised over £30,000 and thousands of followers on our social media channels after seeing the hashtag ‘notmyking’ trending.’ Smith said the group will focus its efforts on planning protests around — and on — the coronation, the date of which has yet to be confirmed. He added: “There has been a real shift in the public debate around the monarchy. We see many more dissenting, less cautious voices. All this was helped by the unjust arrests of protesters, the events of the Accession Council and scandals such as “cash for honors”. Of the holiday on the day of the Queen’s funeral, Smith said: “My advice to people is to get out and enjoy a day in the countryside or indoors catching up on Netflix.” Speaking to Laura Kuenssberg on Sunday, the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, said: “We must not allow anything to overshadow the most important event the world will ever see and that is Her Majesty’s funeral.” Smith responded by saying it was “one of the stupidest things the world has ever heard…if other facts somehow overshadow it, so be it. Most of the country will be doing other things and we have to stop pretending that this is the mourning of the whole country.” Royal officials say the foundation costs every Briton less than £1 a year. The Republic says its cost to the nation each year is around £350m, or £5 per Briton. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. The wealth of the royal family is also difficult to measure due to the opaque nature of their finances and what they directly own. A Reuters analysis in 2015 showed it had nominal assets worth almost £23m at the time. King Charles enjoys a surge in support, but support for the monarchy is at an all-time low, with opinion polls moving against the institution, especially among Scots, young people and ethnic minorities. On Sunday, Labor MP and former shadow cabinet member Clive Lewis spoke out despite party leader Sir Keir Starmer’s call for silence ahead of the Queen’s funeral. He said: “While republicans should respect the language of ‘duty’ and ‘sacrifice’, monarchists have argued so strongly that what the royal family does on our behalf, we must not pretend that reality is anything but a lie.” .
