Monarchy 'in safe hands' with Kate and William says expert

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Ever since Scotland voted to stay in the UK by a relatively small margin, there has been pressure building for a second independence referendum, greatly exacerbated by the Brexit vote two years later. The Union of Scotland with England and Wales has been in place for over 300 years, but recently has looked like it is on shaky ground. William and Kate have expressed their love of Scotland many times and it is clearly somewhere that means a lot to them.

Summers at Balmoral growing up are a very happy memory for William, and he has also said the countryside comforted him when he first heard of his mother Princess Diana’s death.

Scotland is also where William and Kate first met and fell in love while attending St Andrews University.

Recently, they went on a mini-tour of Scotland, as William has been appointed the Lord High Commissioner to the 2021 General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.

Their visit was seen by some as symbolic and even political amidst the constant talk of Indyref2 by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

Pod Save the Queen is hosted by Ann Gripper and features Daily Mirror royal editor Russell Myers.

Mr Myers argued that royals are speaking out on political matters with increasing frequency and implied the Scotland trip was certainly related to the independence debate.

Mr Myers said: “We’ve been speaking on increasing frequency, haven’t we, about royals dipping their toe into politics.

“Certainly William and Kate going up to Scotland ‒ that story in the Sunday Times about, certainly they are more interested in taking the bull by the horns and believing that the politicians are ‘losing Scotland’.

“So, that’s quite interesting, if they start spending a bit more time north of the border.

“Of course, they’re both well known to adore Scotland and it has given them an awful lot of joy in their lives and William is very protective of the Union in his new role as Lord High Commissioner of the Church of Scotland.”

The Sunday Times report mentioned by Mr Myers claimed William and Kate were explicitly sent by the Palace to save the UK.

They have also reportedly been asked to spend more time at Balmoral under plans drawn up to bolster the Union.

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Royal officials are said to be uneasy at the prospect of Scotland breaking away from the Union, especially after the SNP’s success in the latest Holyrood elections.

Scotland has become increasingly out of step with England politically, and Ms Sturgeon took every opportunity to emphasise that things were being done differently north of the border around the control of the coronavirus.

Kate and William spending more time based at Balmoral and strengthening ties with their former university town St Andrews are therefore said to be part of a plan to increase visibility of the Royal Family in Scotland.

A source close to the royal household told the Sunday Times: “They think of it as their Union.

Scottish independence 'would be great for England' says host

“It was originally a union of crowns. They think the politicians have been losing Scotland for them.

“What William is doing is a deliberately more muscular approach to the crown investing in the relationship with Scotland.”

William recently spoke movingly in a speech at the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland about how much Scotland means to him personally.

He said: “I’m shaped by this place. The abiding affection I feel for it is rooted in my experience of its everyday life in people, relationships and its ethic of neighbourliness.”

On the final day of their visit, the Earl and Countess of Rothesay, as they are referred to in Scotland, had a meeting with former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who recently relaunched a renewed campaign to preserve the Union called Our Scottish Future.

They met with Mr Brown and his wife Sarah at the Queen’s official Edinburgh residence, but did not publicise what they discussed.

A spokesperson for Kensington Palace said: “During his time in Scotland, Prince William has spoken to a broad range of people from different communities including politicians from across the political spectrum.”

They also met with Ms Sturgeon and Alistair Carmichael, Liberal Democrat MP for Orkney and Shetland.

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