Details of Emmanuel Macron's unconventional UK state visit revealed - could Trump's be similar?
Details of the French state visit next week have been released, with a different look from usual, as the important diplomatic event takes place in Windsor and not around Buckingham Palace.
In the first unusual step, the Prince and Princess of Wales will travel out to RAF Northolt and personally meet Mr Macron and his wife Brigitte off their plane, before travelling with them to Windsor.
The King and Queen will then formally greet their guests on a special royal dais constructed in Datchet Road in Windsor town centre, with the castle the backdrop as gun salutes sound in nearby Home Park.
There will then be a carriage procession through the town and along part of the Long Walk, which leads to Windsor Castle, before the full ceremonial welcome takes place in the castle's quadrangle.
Later, a grand state banquet will be held with both the King and President Macron giving speeches. Kensington Palace has not confirmed if Kate will attend.
At a cancer wellbeing centre in Colchester this week, she talked about her "rollercoaster" cancer journey and how during recovery it can still be difficult to "function normally at home as you perhaps once used to".
1:21
Mr Macron's state visit, from 8 to 10 July, is the first at Windsor Castle rather than Buckingham Palace, in more than a decade - since that of Irish president Michael D Higgins in 2014.
Windsor has been chosen because of refurbishment at Buckingham Palace.
State visits are seen as the ultimate diplomatic gift the UK can offer, with the royals' soft power used to strengthen diplomatic ties.
The French president will also visit the Palace of Westminster on Tuesday, where he will address parliamentarians in the Royal Gallery and meet opposition leaders at Lancaster House.
On Wednesday, the president and Mrs Macron will join Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Lady Starmer for lunch at Downing Street, ahead of a UK-France summit at Number 10 on Thursday.
But it will be the personal touches that will no doubt make this a special visit for the Macrons.
The King and Queen will take them to see a horse - Fabuleu de Maucour, a 10-year-old grey gelding Mr Macron gifted to known horse-lover Queen Elizabeth II in 2022 for her Platinum Jubilee.
They will also view a Charabanc carriage from the Royal Mews, a present to Queen Victoria from King Louis-Philippe of France in 1844.
And the Macrons will privately pay their respects and lay flowers at the late Queen's tomb in St George's Chapel in Windsor.
The King - as ranger of Windsor Great Park - will also invite the president to tour the Windsor Castle Gardens, including areas of nature restoration and biodiversity and the wider Great Park.
The last state visit to the UK from France was in March 2008.
The King and Queen paid their own a state visit to France in September 2023 and enjoyed a warm rapport with Mr and Mrs Macron, who will stay in the castle during their trip.
Interestingly, the arrangements could be seen as a potential template for US President Donald Trump 's high-profile state visit in September.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
a minute ago
- BBC News
Devon family accommodation sees 'surge' in last-minute bookings
There has been a surge in last-minute bookings for family accommodation in South Devon, helped by the good weather, a tourism boss has executive of the English Rivera Business Improvement District (BID) Carolyn Custerson said family operators, such as holiday parks, big hotels with indoor swimming and family activities, were about 75% full by the start of the six-week summer holidays."The weather stimulates bookings," she said. "It gives people confidence to holiday in the UK and we have seen a surge of last minute bookings."Rhian Hughes, sales and revenue manager at Lady's Mile Holiday Park in Dawlish, said its venue was already 80% full. "Fingers crossed we can get to full capacity," she added."I think over the bank holiday weekend of August, we are 100% full."She agreed that the good weather has played a big part in people booking. South Devon attracts on average more than four million visitors a year and Ms Custerson said bookings will continue "right through the summer". "For the next six weeks - having talked to major operators that provide family accommodation over the last 48 hours - I think we are running at about 75% full," she said."Some people are booking up to 24 or 48 hours before in advance."But she said "there is still capacity"."I think we will be 80% to 85% full by the end of summer, which is very good." She added that the recent spells of hot weather has helped to give tourists confidence in holidaying in the UK, compared to its biggest competitor which is going abroad. "We do have a very strong rebooking pattern which is testament to what we have to offer," added Ms Custerson."We are a year-round destination, but the summer is when the bulk of the visitors come."
Telegraph
a minute ago
- Telegraph
Elite police unit to monitor online critics of migrants
An elite team of police officers is to monitor social media for anti-migrant sentiment amid fears of summer riots. Detectives will be drawn from forces across the country to take part in a new investigations unit that will flag up early signs of potential civil unrest. The division, assembled by the Home Office, will aim to 'maximise social media intelligence' gathering after police forces were criticised over their response to last year's riots. It comes amid growing concern that Britain is facing another summer of disorder, as protests outside asylum hotels spread. On Saturday, crowds gathered in towns and cities including Norwich, Leeds and Bournemouth to demand action, with more protests planned for Sunday. Angela Rayner warned the Cabinet last week that the Government must act to address the 'the real concerns that people have' about immigration. But critics on Saturday night branded the social media plans 'disturbing' and raised concerns over whether they would lead to a restriction of free speech. Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, said: 'Two-tier Keir can't police the streets, so he's trying to police opinions instead. They're setting up a central team to monitor what you post, what you share, what you think, because deep down they know the public don't buy what they're selling. 'Labour have stopped pretending to fix Britain and started trying to mute it. This is a Prime Minister who's happy to turn Britain into a surveillance state, but won't deport foreign criminals, won't patrol high streets, won't fund frontline policing. 'Labour are scared of the public, Labour don't trust the public, Labour don't even know the public.' Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, said: 'This is the beginning of the state controlling free speech. It is sinister, dangerous and must be fought. Reform UK will do just that.' In a further sign of dissent over the Government's approach to social media, campaigners claimed on Saturday that posts about anti-migrant protests in the past week had been censored because of new online safety laws.
The Guardian
24 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Beware the blizzard of lies: US advice on how to handle Farage's Trump tactics
Truth, the progressive California politician Hiram Johnson once said, is the first casualty of war. His oft-cited remark was supposedly made in 1918 in reference to the first world war, which had by then caused millions of human casualties. More than a century later, truth is again caught in the crossfire, this time as a casualty of 21st-century culture wars. If Donald Trump is the high priest of disinformation, then Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform, is showing signs of being a willing disciple, if his behaviour in the UK this week is anything to go by. Farage has proposed sending prisoners abroad – including to El Salvador, where the Trump administration has sent hundreds of deportees and suggested sending US citizens. He also suggested an extensive police recruitment drive and prison-building programme all while cutting health and education spending. The parroting of Trump's policies by a UK populist has not gone unnoticed in the US. And for those who have studied the president's modus operandi, there is one particular tactic the British public should be braced for: the blizzard of lies and false statements that frequently overwhelms his opponents. The Trump experience, they say, contains sobering lessons for Farage's critics. US pro-democracy campaigners says Trump has become even harder to factcheck since his first term, thanks to a combination of factors including looser social media content moderation and a reluctance among some media owners to stand up to his intimidation. The Washington Post, which tracked more than 30,000 lies or misleading statements from Trump during his presidency, lost subscribers and public trust after its billionaire owner, Jeff Bezos, reportedly vetoed an editorial endorsing the Democratic nominee Kamala Harris for president. 'It's become more difficult because there's less commitment from those who are in the best position to do the factchecking,' said Omar Noureldin, a senior vice-president for Common Cause, a non-partisan group. 'Seeking the truth here comes with costs and risks.' Complicating matters is the loss of trust in institutions, with many consumers relying on social media platforms for news. 'Even the best factchecking can be unpersuasive, because we're not just facing an information crisis here, but also a trust crisis in the American information ecosystem,' Noureldin said. Media watchers say the political environment has become so deeply polarised that factchecking can even have the counter-productive effect of further entrenching misplaced beliefs. 'From a lot of research, we're reaching the conclusion that factchecking hasn't been as effective as one would want,' said Julie Millican, the vice-president of Media Matters for America, a media watchdog. 'One reason is that information and disinformation spreads faster than you can check it. It takes a lot longer to factcheck something than it does for it go viral. 'But the other thing is factchecking can backfire. People so distrust institutions that factchecking can validate the misinformation in their minds and make them more inclined to believe the lie they believed in the first place.' A 2022 report from Protect Democracy suggests this is the result of a deliberate strategy of authoritarian regimes. 'Disinformation is spread through coordinated networks, channels and ecosystems, including politically aligned or state-owned media,' the report said. 'The goal is not always to sell a lie, but instead to undermine the notion that anything in particular is true.' Further complicating the problem in the US has been Trump's appointment of allies to key government agencies that have traditionally served as sources of accurate and reliable data for factcheckers. A case in point is Robert F Kennedy Jr, who has engaged in anti-vaccine theories. As Trump's pick for health and human services secretary, he is in charge of the country's vast health bureaucracy. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion 'Factchecking wasn't working very well in the first place, but now you can't even get access to the facts that you need be able to factcheck as well as you used to,' said Millican. The outlook seems bleak, but campaigners say that does not make the problems insurmountable. One answer is to invest in independent, non-partisan research. A prime purpose would be to increase media literacy among young people, who primarily get news from platforms such as TikTok which can be subject to disinformation tools such as AI-manipulated videos. The aim is to teach consumers how to spot doctored footage. 'Media literacy is extremely important and something that should be invested in and taught at a young age,' said Millican. Another solution is the development of 'pre-buttal' strategies to inoculate the public against disinformation, in effect getting the truth out first. Media Matters for America and Common Cause used this approach during last year's presidential election, partly by producing videos designed to counter anticipated false narratives surrounding voting procedures in certain areas. Also important, said Shalini Agarwal, special counsel at Protect Democracy, is calling out the demonisation of vulnerable groups, such as immigrants, as soon as it happens. A crucial role is played by media, even as Trump intensifies his assault on journalists as 'fake news' and tries to exclude certain established outlets from press briefings. 'It's really important when there are opportunities for one-on-one briefings and there are multiple reporters,' Agarwal said. 'Part of it is a sense of collective action. Often, whoever is speaking at the podium won't give a straightforward answer or gives a false answer and then tries to move on – it's incumbent when that happens for other reporters to jump in and say: 'Wait. What about what the other reporter asked?'' Millican has two pieces of advice for Britain and other European countries hoping to arm themselves against any coming authoritarian onslaught: fortify the media and preserve legislation designed to combat disinformation and illegal content online – represented by the online safety act in Britain and the digital safety act in the EU. 'The first thing that's going to happen in these authoritarian takeovers is they're going to try to silence and take over the media and information landscape,' she said. 'Any efforts to rein in hate speech or misinformation on platforms will be seen as tantamount to suppression of conservative thought or free speech. 'I can't stress enough trying to buffer the pollution of your information ecosystem as much as possible. One of the first things that they're going to do is just take down any barriers they can.'
