OMID SCOBIE ON KATE
The journalist admits England’s future queen rarely puts a foot wrong. “She has picked a cause to advocate for [early childhood development] that’s totally appropriate for the role and she’s been extremely dutiful to the heirs of the throne – and she’s a great mother,” he told E! News.
“She relies on the support of the institution around her and she gets it. But if there was ever a moment in which she wavered or tried to steer the course herself, I think she would – just like any other woman that’s married into that family – find herself up against a really tough challenge.”
But he adds Kate is “technically a part-time royal”, prioritising parenting over her royal duties and doing a fraction of the engagements Princess Anne, for example, carries out.
In 2022 alone, Anne made 214 official appearances compared to Kate’s 90. “There’s very little spoken about the small number of engagements Kate does compared to the other working royals, including the queen when she was a working mother of four children,” Omid says.
What he doesn’t add is that Kate had the blessing of the late queen to focus on her children during their formative childhood years – or that Kate picks her causes carefully and dedicates herself to them 100%.
“The Princess of Wales values quality over quantity,” says royal expert Robert Jobson. Going to the opening of every envelope and cutting dozens of ribbons has far less effect than throwing your weight behind something that will really make a difference, he adds.
Richard Fitzwilliams, another royal expert, is scathing of Omid. “He doesn’t understand the monarchy or appreciate dedication to duty,” he says. “The princess is balancing her royal commitments with bringing up a family with William’s support.
“They are doing brilliantly. Their popularity, which the Sussexes can only envy, makes that clear.”