The coronation should be an opportunity for a grown-up discussion about the monarchy, according to Labour for a Republic (L4AR), an organisation of Labour members who believe that democracy requires an elected head of state.
“Some people will want to watch the spectacle as a display of pomp, but many of us will regard the coronation as deeply offensive,” according to Ken Ritchie, the L4AR’s Secretary. “There is no constitutional need for it, and it being held at a time when many people are struggling to heat their homes and feed their kids is totally inappropriate.”
“Labour Party members have campaigned for more than a century for a society that is not divided by rank and class and in which no one is born more important than others. We have no reason to celebrate an event that seeks to glorify an antiquated social order and all its gross inequalities.”
Labour for a Republic has welcomed calls by the campaign group ‘Republic’ for assurances from police forces that the rights of those who oppose the coronation will be respected.
It also, however, wants the political establishment to recognise that opinion on the monarchy is divided and to respect those who believe British society would be better and fairer without a monarchy: it argues that calls for a different sort of head of state are growing, citing polling evidence showing:
that there are more Labour voters who don’t want a hereditary monarchy than there are who want to keep it, and
that Labour voters who want to abolish or reform the monarchy outnumber those who want to keep it unchanged by more than 2 to 1.
“We recognise that all political leaders will feel obliged to play a part in the coronation, but they need to remember they have been elected to bring about progressive change – not prop up an elitist and totally outdated institution” said Ken Ritchie. “We will be joining the protesters on May 6th and invite both our members and the broader Labour movement to do so.”