Should the Queen Step Down

I think William would be quite a popular king as well. As it is, the Queen is doing a sterling job of promoting the UK. Unlike the politicians in government. :( It's they who needs changing.
 
bringerofdecay said:
i think the only people that would honestly care about the dissolution of the monarchy would be the 60+
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Where on earth do you get that idea from? Lots of people support the monarchy , what it stands for as part of our heritage and what it does for our country. It is not limited to people that claim pensions. This thread, however, is about the Queen standing down and not about dissolution of the monarchy.

On that note I don't know why you think it would make such a difference (a new monarch). The OP makes me wonder too how much you know about the British monarchy - the Queen and the royal family spend a great deal of time in Scotland. Whilst people in Scotland had previously (before the Scottish Parliament) felt under represented by government I don't ever remember them feeling like the Queen was 'sitting in London all day'. She is very popular in Scotland so I don't think there is any issue there.

As for troops morale - troops would get a morale boost from having the equipment and support they need (and have needed for decades now - which the Queen has no influence over). I don't think we need to boost an image of the monarchy by changing monarchs as that image is already firm in peoples minds abroad.
 
bringerofdecay said:
yeah i know, it's a pretty bad indication of our herritage. :( :o
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I think perhaps to describe it as an indictment of our collective lack of knowledge of our heritage might be more apposite although indication does work. :)

As for the original point, I don't think that simply changing the head of state will have any real beneficial effect plus it seems often forgotten that the Queen does hold a lot of knowledge in her position and has been an important advisor to successive prime ministers. As for the monarchy itself, I'm not too bothered one way or the other, as long as the worst excesses are curbed it doesn't seem to harm the country to have the monarchy and they offer a certain amount of positive PR. Additionally I'd keep 'em for Prince Phillip alone, the comedy value of that man is worth the 50p or whatever it costs in tax per year. ;)
 
...wow I never knew people cared so much about the monarchy.

As far as I understood it they are just celebrities that are supposed to try and represent the nation and its heritage...which is important I suppose but I still don't really see the big deal.

Not being British myself I could care less who was king or queen, it's not as if they have as much of an impact on the country as a president or prime minister.

If I could change a leader it would be Bush, not the Queen. His actions impact not only America but the rest of the world. In contrast, the Queen's actions really don't do squat worldwide...correct me if I'm wrong though I've never been very familiar with governments and politics.
 
shes been dead for years

they've just stuffed the body and use circus trained puppeteers and ventriloquists when she makes a public appearance
 
I don't see any compelling reasons there for the Queen to step down!

Ricochet J said:
But now that the word "Queen" is, in my opinion, being overused, and seeing as the UK is in need of some serious revival I reckon the King of the United Kingdom should boost morale.
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The word is being overused? Well, the Queen is quite an important public figure in the UK! Surely if you're fed up with people harping on about the monarchy, the last thing you need is a Coronation to dominate the press for weeks on end.
- People are not happy about all this stuff about immigration, I have no comment on that, but a lot of people do come to the UK uneducated about our traditions, if there was a new King, perhaps they'd learn more
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I'm not sure why they would? Those immigrants who don't integrate into public life are going to ignore a King just as readily as they do a Queen. They don't ignore the royal tradition because they're bored of it and it needs some novelty - they ignore it because they don't care. Does the Queen put a roof over their heads? Does the Queen give them a job?

- Scotland want their own independance. a lot of people are against this. IF there is a new King, perhaps he maintain unity by having a bigger role in Scotland as apposed to sitting in London all day
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I don't think you can say the Queen 'sits in London all day' - she has a very active role as an ambassador for our country. A new monarch isn't gonna make a mite of difference to the independence question; it's something that needs to be worked out through established political processes rather than through the will of a King. This isn't the 16th century :)

- If there is a new King it will boost our troops moral.
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Not really. They'll still be being blown up by IEDs, they'll still be in harsh climates with weapons and armour that don't work properly, they'll still be fighting thankless battles. It's not like a new monarch is gonna be sent to Iraq, unless we want to be crowning yet another one pretty soon!

- If there is a new King, it will be televised and the whole world will watch. It will show the world despite today's technology, we're not forgetting our roots. The UK will be watched my millions and good comments will be said about it. These will undoubtly reach our media which will be read/seen by us, which will make us feel good for living in the UK again.

Currently, you might ask, why don't we feel good living in the UK anyway? Well, I do! But a lot of people I know complain of taxes, house prices, war on terror and everything else.
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So you just contradicted yourself. After a few weeks of publicity surrounding the coronation there will still be high taxes and house prices and the war on terror will rumble on.

We can't just crown a King arbitrarily. What you are describing is similar to taking a collective drug. It might make things more interesting and easier to deal with for a short time, but after the comedown you'll be straight back into the grind - and it's not good for long-term health.
 
oddjob62 said:
I'm pretty sure Charles can forfeit his rights to the throne and let it pass to William and do think William (V) would be a very popular king if he was to assume the throne in a next few years.
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True, he could and I agree William would be hugely popular. However as far as I know Charles still very much wants to do it. I actually feel sorry for Charles because (even though I don't support the concept of the monarchy) I think he gets a lot of unfair press and dislike from people, especially since Diana died. I think it is a shame that he may not be very popular as King, and people would be clamouring for William to be King instead.
 
andy said:
shes been dead for years

they've just stuffed the body and use circus trained puppeteers and ventriloquists when she makes a public appearance
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Reminds me of the movie Dead Silence ;)

(not House of Wax... duh)
 
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I don't see any need to abdicate and make way for Charlie. That would cause more problems than it solved. I worked at a ceremony where her majesty was present the other week and she seemed very with it, capable and a great figurehead for our country.
 
bringerofdecay said:
i think the only people that would honestly care about the dissolution of the monarchy would be the 60+, and personally i wouldn't be too about the pensioners rising up against us :p
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You are wrong, I personally would be against the monarchy's dissolution, don't have time to give my reasons atm, JTISI.
 
The Queen is not only a very good stabilising influence but is apparently a very capable and shrewd individual who has a great deal of clout on the world stage. However Charlie, (if reports are to be believed) is a disaster area. If people think the monarchy is out of touch/date with Elizabeth II, Charles will push it to a whole new level. If anyone has the potential to effectively destroy the monarchy institution in this country, it's the Prince of Wales.

I'm not a republican and find the whole idea of yet another politician as Head of State to be rather unappealing to say the least. But with King George VII (as he will be known) leading the way I'm not so sure where I'd stand.

Plus he seems to want lovely Camillia to be Queen. Now while I have no problem with them being married I really wouldn't fancy Camillia as Queen Consort.
 
dirtydog said:
Why wouldn't he be known as King Charles?
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The whole King Charles the First unpleastness! Charles II had a pretty poor reputation too. The name has 'history' ;).

*Sly edit there* James was the one they 'kicked out'.
 
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"You know, when you get it wrong, you really get it wrong! That woman has given her whole life in service to her people. Fifty years doing a job SHE never wanted! A job she watched kill her father. She's executed it with honor, dignity, and, as far as I can tell, without a single blemish, and now we're all baying for her blood! All because she's struggling to lead the world in mourning for someone who... who threw everything she offered back in her face. And who, for the last few years, seemed committed 24/7 to destroying everything she holds most dear!"

A quote from the film "The Queen" in which Tony Blair hits back at critics of the Queen from within his own ranks for the way in which she deals with the Diana situation.

The film, albeit fictional, is based on facts and provides a good insight into the Monarchy and more specifically the Queen. Well worth a watch to those who are not lovers.

I personally come from a middle class background, but I do not think removing the Monarchy will ever be the right thing to do. At least not for the foreseeable future.

I know the OP was discussing the benefits of her stepping down, but I see none, infact I see many negatives. She has done more for this Country than most of us ever will and I just think she deserves respect for this fact.
 
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