Prince and I had good old chinwag over a nice cup of tea, says Boris
BORIS Johnson and Prince Charles met for a ‘good old chinwag’ yesterday – but refused to say if they discussed the Government’s Rwanda migration policy.
The pair were pictured shaking hands before sharing tea and biscuits in a one-on-one meeting lasting 15 minutes.
But Mr Johnson refused to disclose whether they discussed the prince’s reported condemnation of the plans as ‘appalling’.
On Thursday, he said he would make a point about the ‘obvious merits’ of the scheme when he met the heir to the throne.
The Prime Minister added that he hoped critics would have an ‘open mind’ about it.
Earlier yesterday, he made another pointed remark that there were ‘a lot of prejudices about Rwanda that need to be blown away’.
Asked at a press conference about their meeting on the fringes of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, Mr Johnson said: ‘It was a good old chinwag and we certainly covered a lot of ground.
‘You can certainly take away from what the prince had to say today in his opening address to the summit is that everyone can see the huge, huge progress that Rwanda has made.’ The pair posed for photogra
‘Prejudices need to be blown away’
phers and smiled before their chat. Mr Johnson was the first to leave after their 15-minute discussion to attend another meeting.
Senior palace staff were then invited into the room for a debrief with Charles. They included the Queen’s private secretary, Sir Edward Young, Charles’s own principle private secretary, Sir Clive Alderton, as well as his deputy Chris Fitzgerald.
Clarence House declined to brief further about what the men discussed, but sources indicated it was ‘unlikely’ that migration would have been on the agenda.
Downing Street later reiterated this point, in what appeared to be a concerted attempt to de-escalate tensions. Earlier, Mr Johnson told broadcasters in Rwanda: ‘I wouldn’t comment on anything that I say to the Queen or the Queen says to me, nor would I say what the heir to the throne might say to me or what I may say to him.
‘Prime ministers never talk about that. What I will say is ... there are a lot of prejudices about Rwanda that need to be blown away. The achievements of the government of Rwanda over the last couple of decades have been remarkable.’
Clarence House has declined to comment on ‘supposed anonymous private conversations’ regarding his reported comment on the Rwanda scheme, except to restate that Charles remains politically neutral and ‘matters of policy are decisions for government’.