UK authorities have clarified its position on VIP transport for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II after a leaked document claimed world le...
UK authorities have clarified its position on VIP transport for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II after a leaked document claimed world leaders would be bussed to London to overcome traffic issues.
Joe Biden will not be forced to take the bus when going to the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II next Monday, an official spokesman for the UK government has reportedly clarified.
This runs contrary to allegedly leaked guidance for the event that made public on Sunday, which suggested that foreign dignitaries visiting the UK will be banned from taking their helicopters and private cars to the funeral service, with the use of private and government jets also being explicitly discouraged by British authorities.
While justified with reference to logistical difficulties to do with the event, the measures would have also helped avoid embarrassment for the green-obsessed UK government, who suffered significant bad PR after over 400 private jets turned up for the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow last year.
However, according to a report by POLITICO on Tuesday, it appears that these guidelines might not actually apply to U.S. President Joe Biden, with an official spokesman for the UK government saying that it will actually be left up to the American Commander-in-Chief whether he opts for the communal mode of transport or not.
“I think that would be a question for the U.S. and how they prefer the president to travel,” the publication reports the unnamed official as saying.
“I would say that clearly arrangements for leaders, including how they travel, will vary depending on individual circumstances,” they continued, claiming that the details leaked on Sunday were in fact just “guidance”, despite being worded in a way that POLITICO itself describes as “unequivocal”.
“Unequivocal” or not, however, some world leaders have already publicly announced that it is their intention to break the guidelines, with Australia’s left-wing PM, Anthony Albanese, confirming that he will bring his government’s private jet to the event.
“Those plans have been in place for a long period of time. Since well before I became Prime Minister,” the politician said, justifying his refusal to obey the UK request.
“I don’t know how many Prime Ministers ago the plans were put in place,” he continued. “But they’re long-standing plans for myself and the Governor-General to travel to London and we’ll be doing so on Thursday night.”
It isn’t as if the Australian leader will have a whole aircraft to himself, though. According to reports, the Australian government has been reaching out to other leaders in the Pacific and offering them spaces on his aircraft, to reduce the cost burden on them to attend the funeral.
It also remains unclear whether other foreign figures, many of whom are of significant international importance, will obey the UK edicts, with the likes of Japan’s Emperor Naruhito, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and French President Emmanuel Macron all expected to attend.
Further important figures, such as Indian Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping, may also be in attendance, though neither world leader has made their intentions clear as of writing.
With that being said, for Joe Biden at least, a refusal to take the ‘Beast’ limousine would be a shot to his ostensible commitment both to green agenda activism as well as further investment into public transport, even if it is against U.S. Secret Service rules on moving the President.
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