By PETER KELLNER [Prospect] – In recent years, polls have consistently found that the public would prefer William, rather than Charles, to be Britain’s next monarch. No longer. In YouGov’s latest poll for Prospect, just 37 per cent of respondents thought that William should succeed his grandmother, while 45 per cent think Charles should inherit the crown after more than four decades as Prince of Wales. This compares with a 41-37 per cent margin in William’s favour five years ago, just after Charles announced his engagement to Camilla…
Wedding fever has also sapped the radicalism of some republicans. Five years ago 19 per cent wanted neither Charles nor William to become king: they wanted the monarchy scrapped. That number has declined by one third, to just 13 per cent. Neither is it true that the older we get the more we favour the monarchy: the limited appeal of republicanism varies little by age. On the other hand, there are signs that many people would like a monarch of roughly their own age. Charles’s generation—the over 60s—prefer him to William by three-to-two, while the under 40s would slightly prefer William to be king.
That said, there is no wish for a handover anytime soon.
Continued at Prospect | More Chronicle & Notices.
