King Charles warned Royal Family is becoming 'more political every day' under his reign

King Charles has plans for a slimmed-down monarchy, says insiders. Royal biographer and commentator, Dr. Ed Owens, agrees a slimmed-down monarchy is "essential," but believes, as a result, the royals are spreading themselves too thin and getting into areas that are meant for the government. Express US spoke with Owens about looming problems and possible solutions. 

Owens, author of After Elizabeth: Can the Monarchy Save Itself?, argues that the monarchy “needs to rethink its roles as part of the modern nation,” and offers a suggestion, saying, “That it needs to do less. And it needs to do less in a better way."

He suggests that the royals mean well but are overstepping boundaries, saying: “They have to be seriously careful because they are not meant to get involved in politics. One of the arguments in my book is that the monarchy under King Charles is becoming more and more political, every day because they do have a louder advocacy role than they’ve ever had under (Queen) Elizabeth II’s reign.”

The conversation continues with Owens talking about how the royals pulling back on certain issues may help in creating change. 

Owens appreciates what the royals are doing but also has concerns, saying, “There are things that the royal family do well. And there are things that the royal family do less well.” When asked to provide an example of each, he was more than inclined to do so. 

In regards to what the royals do well, he said: “Let me give you one thing that I love about what the royal family do, that is, promote a sense social inclusion and a sense of social integration. And they do that by emphasizing, if you like, the positive — the positive things that have resulted from Britain becoming more diverse, a culturally inclusive nation — and they do so by focusing attention on what we would traditionally see as marginalized unity, the edges of society, and in particular, communities of different ethnic, racial, religious backgrounds. I think this is something the royals do rather well.” 

But, at the same time, he believes their good will can be problematic in some cases, adding: “What I would suggest is less helpful, the royals are the great promoters of great awareness around mental health and mental wellbeing. And on the surface, that sounds like a brilliant idea, but what they’re actually doing there is that they are trying to plug a gap through philanthropy and advocacy, which should’ve been filled through government action. I don’t like the fact that they are offering a philanthropic solution to what is a grave social problem, that historically in the United Kingdom, would’ve been fixed though the National Health Service.”

He breaks it down into simple terms: “It’s not a fix. It gives them a role. It gives them visibility. It makes them seem like they care. But, I would suggest, if they actually cared, they would step away from the problem to the extent that the government felt that it needed to act.”

He’s concerned the royals' charitable efforts are getting in the way of tangible solutions, saying: “It’s not long-term. It’s a crisis that faces the entire nation, and as I say, it enables government inaction. The government can say, “Oh, that scenario has been dealt with, led by the royals."

Owens suggests the royals stepping in makes allowances for the government: “Unfortunately, the government doesn’t feel like it needs to act because we have this kind of patch-quilt solution that’s being led by the royals.”

At this point in time, there are eleven working royals with each carrying out 100 and more engagements per year, according to the official Court Circular, which keeps track of past engagements. 

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