Hearts of stone

Acampaign is gathering pace in Scotland to withhold delivery of the Stone of Destiny to Westminster Abbey for the Coronation of King Charles III in May. It began with Alex Salmond, the former SNP leader who now heads the Alba Party. But it has since been picked up by Ash Regan, one of the three candidates vying to succeed Nicola Sturgeon as Scotland’s First Minister. The stone was seized by Edward I in 1296 and incorporated in the Coronation Chair – but was returned in 1996 with the expectation that it would be handed over temporarily for future coronations of the monarch of England and Scotland. There is another stone on which kings have been crowned and that resides in Kingston upon Thames. It might need to be dusted down.