PM arrives in London for funeral
WELLINGTON: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has arrived in London ahead of the Queen’s funeral on Monday night (NZ time).
She will also view the Queen’s casket, which is lying in state at Westminster Hall.
‘‘At this stage, certainly it is my intention to pay my respects as the Queen lies in state,’’ Ms Ardern said yesterday.
‘‘I feel very humbled at the opportunity to be here on behalf of New Zealand, to be a part of what is a very sad but very historic occasion here, and so I feel a great weight of responsibility being here for New Zealanders at this time.’’
Ms Ardern is also expected to have an audience with King Charles, Prince William and new British Prime Minister Liz Truss.
While the details of her audience with the King were still being worked out, she was likely to get one on onetime with the King during a meeting of the realm nations tomorrow (NZ time), Ms Ardern said.
‘‘In that first opportunity to see the King facetoface, I’ll simply share the sorrow that New Zealand has and pass on our deepest condolences.
‘‘At the end of the day, although this is a period of transition for him, he has also lost his beloved mother . . . and for New Zealand, that’s first and foremost for us.’’
The King had a deep ‘‘interest in New Zealand, very genuine love for New Zealanders’’, and she had no doubt that that would only continue, she said.
In the few hours since she landed in London, she had seen the ‘‘sheer scale’’ of the effect of the Queen’s death on the British people, Ms Ardern said. ‘‘This is a nation in mourning.’’ She would never understand how the Queen gave her entire life to duty, she said.
‘‘I do feel very lucky to have met her and very aware that she will be the last Queen of my lifetime, and so that sits with me as well.
‘‘She was unique, she was a queen who knew war, she knew great tragedy, and yet she also had, from what I observed, a fair sense of humour as well.
‘‘She was a mother, a grandmother, loved her family deeply, and you even got that sense just in the conversations that you had with her — but also very stoic. And I think that probably comes with having gone through as much as she did.’’
Ms Ardern also reiterated her position on the future of the monarchy.
She believed New Zealand would become a republic in her lifetime, but there was not a ‘‘sense of urgency from New Zealanders’’ and her government was not pursuing it.
There would be ‘‘a time and a place’’ for the debate, but for now, it was about remembering the Queen.
Ms Ardern’s audience with Prince William was due to take place overnight (NZ time).
‘‘The Prince of Wales has always been there for New Zealand in its time of grief . . . and so this is a time for us to be there for him and his family, too.’’
Ms Ardern was expected to meet Ms Truss on Monday, before the funeral.
The meeting with Ms Truss, while focusing on the Queen, would also cover issues of Ukraine and trade, she said.