Time to open up the Palace

Gordon Brown has rather a lot on his plate at the moment, what with failed attempts to oust him as Labour leader and fending off calls for an immediate general election.  So I hope it hasn’t escaped his attention that he has only a few days left to accede to the decision of the Information [...]

Is 60 years of small talk worth celebrating?

A deep freeze across the country, panic buying in the shops, and the prospect of a Conservative government elected on the back of a recession: it could still be the 1970s.  To complete the picture of a nation that seems incapable of social and political progress, we are now to be treated to a rerun [...]

Republic Tuesday: news review from the Christmas holiday

Some of the stories you might have missed over the Christmas and New Year break: Prince Charles and Iraq: The News of the World trawled through its archives and rehashed an old story about Charles campaigning against Britain’s involvement in the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. Arguably designed to increase pressure on Tony Blair [...]

It’s time to curb Charles’ dangerous meddling

In an “exclusive” story yesterday the News of the World reported claims that Prince Charles had actively campaigned against Britain’s involvement in the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.  (In fact the substantive elements of the story were almost identical to another article the paper ran seven years earlier.) Prince Charles is already known to [...]

Your New Year’s resolution: support Republic

If you believe that Britain would be better off without a monarchy, then you are not alone.  There are more than ten million people in the UK who believe that an unelected head of state has no part to play in the future of Britain.  Ideas about what system should replace the current hereditary monarch [...]

The republican year ahead: some predictions

So what will 2010 offer to those of us who continue to campaign for a democratically elected head of state in Britain? General election Politically, the year will be dominated by an election campaign that some believe will see the issues of social class and inherited wealth rise to the top of the agenda.  Most [...]

The Windsors’ very public “private” moments

So much for the queen’s demands for privacy over the Christmas holidays.  Since Elizabeth Windsor let it be known that the paparazzi would be as welcome at Sandringham this year as animal rights protesters at the local Boxing Day hunt, the royal family seem to have never been out of the media spotlight.  And this [...]

A Christmas present from Suffolk Coastal Republic

Season’s greetings from Suffolk Coastal Republic! Show off your support for a democratically elected head of state with this three-dimensional desk toy, complete with inspirational quotes. For best results print both pages on heavyweight paper or lightweight card. Cut carefully around the outline, score along the black lines and fold. Fix the tabs with glue [...]

Veil of secrecy surrounding Charles’ lobbying must be lifted

In recent days the controversy over Prince Charles’ lobbying of government ministers and his private interference in the affairs of state reached a head when it was revealed that he had written directly to ministers in eight Whitehall departments over the last three years. Charles’ advisers are also said to have pressed senior cabinet ministers [...]

Take action to protect our right to know about the royal family

The campaign to make the monarchy subject to the same rules of disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act as all other public authorities seems to be coming to a head.  A recent ruling by the Information Commissioner requires the government to release more than one hundred items of correspondence between the government and the [...]