It is a law of our democracy that politics and royalty must not mix.
Of course, we live in a “constitutional monarchy” where King Charles is the head of state, looking through government documents and meeting with the Prime Minister on a weekly basis.
But when it comes to the task of setting political direction and framing our nation’s political debate, the Royal Family must squeeze it out and remain completely neutral.
👉 Listen above, and click here to follow Electoral Dysfunction wherever you get your podcasts 👈
Just as members of the royal family don’t stray into politics, political editors and politicians like me rarely talk about the royal family.
In fact, politicians actively avoid any question inviting them to comment on the latest tabloid drama about the royal family.
But on this week’s episode of Electoral Dysfunction, we break from our usual routine to discuss the Princess of Wales’ announcement that she has cancer, and ask whether this might be part of the role the royal family plays in the life of our country, both culturally and socially. Moments when roles are replaced. More political.
Because the princess’s diagnosis opens up a conversation about cancer after King Charles announced he had it, and the British people may be taking that conversation into a political dimension.
Realizing that anyone can be in this situation makes the state of our health care system even more apparent.
In the same way that some people may ask, “Will I get cancer?”, we are also assessing what the prognosis is so that the shaky NHS can treat us promptly.
This was a point brought to us by listener Sophie, who said in an email that while she had “huge sympathy” for the Princess of Wales and King Charles, “I wonder if now is the right time to start discussing the reality” for the majority of the UK Does anyone provide cancer treatment? “
Follow Sky News for all the latest news from the UK and around the world
Because while NHS waiting lists are at record highs, the pandemic is holding back many patients coming forward for cancer screening and testing.
NHS guidelines aim for 75% of patients with suspected cancer to be diagnosed within four weeks of referral, while 85% should wait less than two months for their first treatment.
But the last time these goals were achieved was in 2015.
In England and Wales, more than a third of people are waiting too long for treatment, while in Scotland, where the targets are slightly different, a quarter of people have waited more than two months to start treatment.
The public appears to have had enough, an annual report from the King’s Fund and Nuffield Trust think tank, published this week, found Public confidence in NHS at lowest level Support for almost all NHS services has fallen since polling began in 1983.
71% cited long wait times for GP or hospital appointments as a major reason for dissatisfaction.
Half of those surveyed support higher taxes and more NHS spending as we prepare for a general election in which the state of our health service will be the subject of a national debate.
Please use Chrome browser for a more convenient video player
Satisfaction with NHS falling
Labor MP Jesse Phillips said “everyone’s sympathy goes out to Princess Catherine”. But she also expressed on our podcast what many of our listeners might be feeling if they saw someone battling this terrible disease and were frustrated that treatment came too late.
“[The royals] They would have had better treatment in terms of a cancer diagnosis than my family and my sister-in-law, who is currently dying of cancer and has young children like Katherine,” she said.
“The reality is not everyone is wary of them [in screening and testing for cancer]. I’m not saying the royal family shouldn’t be vigilant, everyone in the country knows they will be even more vigilant. “
But Jesse also thinks the royals should perhaps “acknowledge that it’s not easy for other people”.
She added: “I think if they don’t address this particular issue, I just think it’s dangerous that people like me who sympathize with them are going to start to feel a little bit hurt.”
Political territory that the royal family is reluctant to touch, let alone attempt to cross.
But as puppets of the state, their diagnoses and the outpouring of sympathy have thrust the beleaguered NHS into the national spotlight once again.
Click here to follow the election hurdles and get it every Friday wherever you get your podcasts
Follow us on Google news ,Twitter , and Join Whatsapp Group of thelocalreport.in
