The beaming monarch, 96, welcomed her 15th PM to her Highlands castle instead of flying south. It had been originally planned to host audiences with the outgoing Boris Johnson and his replacement at Buckingham Palace.
It was a break with tradition enforced by courtiers’ worries over her “episodic” mobility problems.
In her 70 years on the throne, the Queen, whose first prime minister was Winston Churchill, has seen many leaders come and go.
So there was no sense that the turmoil that has beset the Conservative Party in a long summer leadership contest had left her fazed.
Leaning on her now familiar walking stick, she smiled broadly as she waited for Ms Truss to come in.
She greeted her warmly with a handshake in front of a roaring fire beneath the mantelpiece in the castle’s drawing room, to turn yet another page in our nation’s history.
The Queen, dressed in a grey cardigan, pale blue blouse and tartan skirt, asked the winner of the Conservative leadership contest to form a new Government.
In a statement, using the traditional language for such moments, the Royal Household said: “The Queen received in audience The Right Honourable Elizabeth Truss MP today and requested her to form a new administration. Ms Truss accepted Her Majesty’s offer and kissed hands upon her appointment as Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury.”
There was, in fact, no kissing of hands. A handshake is deemed sufficient these days.
This story is from the September 07, 2022 edition of Daily Express.
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This story is from the September 07, 2022 edition of Daily Express.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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