King Charles salutes late queen, public workers in speech

The king’s first remarks recalled his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth who died in September at age 96 after 70 years on the throne

Strikes this month by nurses, ambulance crews, teachers, postal workers and train drivers have put pressure on UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak

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King Charles III evoked memories of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, as he broadcast his first Christmas message as monarch, in a speech that also paid tribute to the “selfless dedication” of Britain’s public service workers, many of whom are in a fight with the government over pay. Photo: AP

Published: 11:46pm, 25 Dec 2022

King Charles III evoked memories on Sunday of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth, as he broadcast his first Christmas message as monarch in a speech that also paid tribute to the “selfless dedication” of Britain’s public service workers, many of whom are in a fight with the government over pay.

Charles, 74, also empathised in the pre-recorded message with people struggling to make ends meet “at a time of great anxiety and hardship”. Like some other parts of the world, the UK is wrestling with high inflation that has caused a cost-of-living crisis for many households.

The king’s first remarks, however, recalled his mother, who died in September at age 96 after 70 years on the throne.

“Christmas is a particularly poignant time for all of us who have lost loved ones,” Charles said. “We feel their absence that every familiar turn of the season and remember them in each cherished tradition.”

Charles immediately ascended to the throne upon the queen’s death. His coronation ceremony is scheduled for May.

For his televised Christmas message, he wore a dark blue suit. Unlike Elizabeth, who often sat at a desk to deliver the annual speech, Charles stood by a Christmas tree at St George’s Chapel, a church on the grounds of Windsor Castle where his mother and his father, Prince Philip, were buried.