Japan royalty among those to get a bus to the funeral

THE Emperor of Japan will be among visiting royals on a bus to Westminster Abbey on Monday rather than using their own private state transport.

The British foreign office is refusing to back down over requests for visiting dignitaries to take their own cars to the venue. Despite US President Joe Biden receiving special dispensation to arrive in his own armoured limousine, all monarchs attending will be boarding the escorted buses.

This includes Emperor Naruhito, who will be making his first foreign trip since taking the throne in 2019, and his wife

Empress Masako. This visit is especially significant as, traditionally, Japanese emperors do not attend funerals due to a cultural belief that death is impure.

Joining them will be King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium, King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain and King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden.

French president Emmanuel Macron and his Israeli counterpart Isaac Herzog will reportedly use their own cars due to security concerns. A No.10 spokesman said: ‘Some arrangements will differ depending on the needs of the different leaders, so I’m not going to speculate.’