The New King and the Old Constitutional Order

The announcement of the death of Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday, September 8, came at a time of great crisis and political upheaval in Britain and across the world. Her death came just two days after the appointment of the new Prime Minister, Elizabeth Truss, on September 6. In such circumstances, the old constitutional order has been bound to come under question. The whole scenario, with code names used for the death of the monarch and precisely what the procedures and protocols must be to ensure that the succession is seamless, has been precisely planned for many years. Indeed, the cry of, "The Queen Is Dead! Long Live the King!" is said to go back to 1272, when Edward I succeeded Henry III, honouring the "customs of the realm", and about to wage a battle to control Wales.

It is ironic that Charles, "Prince of Wales", should now become King Charles III, inescapably reminding us that Charles I and Charles II came before and after the English Civil Wars of 1640 to 1660, fought over the issue of who holds and defines an indivisible political power.

However, much of the present pomp and circumstance surrounding the succession, the trappings of the monarchy, the lying in state, the rituals of a coronation, and so on, date from more recent times, particularly Victorian and Edwardian times. They are designed to produce a sense of awe, that the person of the monarch is a fictitious person of state, symbolising the "rock" upon which "the nation" is built, a mother-figure, in the person of Elizabeth, who cares for her subjects, her children, who can claim that "we are all in this together", so that all must look up to this fictitious person, who holds in their hands an orb and a sceptre, representing spiritual and temporal authority.

This is the old constitutional order which is coming under question, not least because King Charles has not the authority which had been built up around Queen Elizabeth and the new Elizabethan Age. A new Carolean Age does not convey what is necessary in preserving the old constitutional order. The time and the place are not appropriate.

The future lies with the striving of the people for empowerment and not with these obsolete forces. In these circumstances, there is a concerted attempt to keep the institution of the monarchy and its Westminster system of government in existence and functioning in order to preserve and perpetuate the old constitutional order. In the wake of the Queen's death, there has been non-stop blanket media coverage, which is meant to define the thought material presented to people's brains, so that this is what is processed rather than the reality which is experienced directly. The ceremony has been full of the symbolism that aims to perpetuate the old order. For instance, there is the Queen's oak coffin, which recalls the "Royal Oak" in which the future King Charles II hid following the Battle of Worcester in 1651.

Proclamations have been read as King Charles III tours the "United Kingdom" to ensure that the King is recognised as "our only lawful and rightful Liege Lord Charles the Third, by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of His other Realms and Territories, King, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith, to whom we do acknowledge all Faith and Obedience with humble Affection; beseeching God by whom Kings and Queens do reign to bless His Majesty with long and happy Years to reign over us". "Liege Lord" means that his subjects are vassals, swearing allegiance, and "Realms" are territories over which the monarch rules. This is not meant simply to be archaic language but to negate head on the striving of the peoples and the requirement of the times for empowerment, for the people themselves to have political power in their hands. This is the nub of the whole pageantry and paraphernalia which has followed the death of Queen Elizabeth and the accession of King Charles.

This brings out that the issue is not to reduce this historical juncture to one simply of being pro- or anti-monarchy. It is to affirm the right to conscience and indeed, the right of people to be in touch with and express their own emotions. Otherwise the situation encourages everyone to feel overawed and oppressed. Indeed, the whole historical development of the monarchy is being challenged. The monarchy has not been a benign institution in an unchanging world. Far from it.

To redress the crimes committed by the British monarchy itself goes beyond words of apology, if they are forthcoming. It is to reject the old constitutional order itself. These crimes committed across the "Commonwealth of Nations", such as suppressing the national liberation movements and massacring and assassinating the insurgent forces were done in the name of the monarch and this constitutional order, of ensuring "peace" while the people's wealth was stolen, not least by the Royal Family itself.

The constitutional order which the rich and powerful want the peoples of the world to accept is now on display as the official circles try might and main to suppress its significance, which is that it is the rich and powerful themselves who control the levers of power which makes it possible for them to obscenely parade this wealth, privilege and power. They have contempt for the people and their problems, the cost-of-living crisis at home, the famines and devastation abroad, the aggression and threat of war to back up their power and destroy what they cannot control.

The conclusion is that the old constitutional order must be rejected. The facts of social development and of social history show this, and that now is an historical turning point, the significance of which must be and is being grasped by everyone who espouses enlightenment and is opposed to the concerted efforts to deny and stop the wheels of history.

RCPB(ML) calls on everyone to join in turning things around in order to favour the people, not the obsolescent forces who at present hold the reins of power, and who are so desperate to divert the people's striving for empowerment and democratic renewal. Never have the times been so insistent in calling out for this democratic renewal, which attains special significance when its negation is so evidently being thrust down our throats. Sovereignty must lie with the people!

It is well documented how the Royal Family has accumulated vast wealth, not to mention its royal possessions and its retinues. Its role in charities such as the Prince's Trust has come into question, and its discretion to influence legislation to protect and favour personal interests has come under so much scrutiny that it is said that King Charles has had to undertake to scale back his "interference in politics". It was reported in the Guardian last year that the Queen and Prince Charles over the course of Queen's reign had vetted more than 1,000 laws ranging from Brexit trade deals to inheritance and land policy via a secretive procedure known as Queen's Consent. The huge number of laws subject to royal vetting cover matters ranging from justice, social security, pensions, race relations and food policy. They included draft laws that affected the Queen's personal property such as her private estates in Balmoral and Sandringham. In addition, the Sovereign has immunity from more than 160 laws.

In 2022, Queen Elizabeth II was estimated to be personally worth £365 million. According to the Sunday Times Rich List, this figure is up £15 million from her 2020 earnings and includes the Sovereign Grant and her personal income. As for the monarchy as a whole, Forbes magazine puts their total net worth as £72.5 billion. The Sovereign gets their money from three sources: the annual Sovereign Grant payment, the Privy Purse and their personal wealth and inheritance. The first is a figure the Sovereign receives annually from the government, whilst the second two sources are independent wealth. The "Privy Purse" is the private income the Sovereign receives from the Duchy of Lancaster. This is essentially a portfolio of land, property and other assets that have been held in trust for the Sovereign since 1399.

"At the end of March 2021, the Duchy of Lancaster had £577.3m of net assets under its control, delivering net surplus of £22.3m," says a statement on the Duchy of Lancaster website. This figure of £22.3 million is therefore what the Queen received for the year ending March 2021. A government picked chancellor takes care of the Duchy of Lancaster estate. The Queen owned the Balmoral and Sandringham Estates, which were both inherited from her father, George VI. Then there's the £10 million estate of Prince Philip. This was left to the Queen following his death in April last year. The Queen Mother additionally left her daughter an estimated £70m fortune when she died in 2002.

In May this year, when opening Parliament on behalf of Queen Elizabeth, there was the absurd and despicable spectacle of billionaire Charles sitting on a golden throne, introducing the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill by saying: "My Government's priority is to grow and strengthen the economy and help ease the cost of living for families. My Government will level up opportunity in all parts of the country and support more people into work."

Meanwhile, the Duchy of Lancaster passes to Charles, while Charles's title and fiefdom - Cornwall - goes to Prince William, now Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay. William was also made Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester the day following the accession of King Charles. The Duchy of Lancaster comprises a reported 18,433 hectares of land - for residential, commercial, and agricultural use - held in a trust for the ruler of the day. King Charles III will not pay inheritance tax, and neither does the Duchy of Cornwall pay corporation tax.

The New York Times, on September 13, a few days after the Queen's death, carried an article detailing how Charles has spent his life turning his royal estate into a billion-pound portfolio, increasing the value and profits of the Duchy of Cornwall by about 50%. Today, the 130,000 acre Duchy of Cornwall owns The Oval cricket ground, farmland in the south of England, seaside vacation rentals, office space in London and a suburban supermarket depot. The conglomerate's holdings are valued at roughly £1.2 billion. The New York Times says: "The Duchy of Cornwall was established in the 14th century as a way to generate income for the heir to the throne and has essentially funded Charles's private and official expenses. One example of its financial might: The $28 million [£24.27 million] profit he made from it last year dwarfed his official salary as prince, just over $1.1 million [£0.95 million]." In 2017, leaked financial documents known as the Paradise Papers revealed that Charles's duchy estate had invested millions in offshore companies, including a Bermuda-registered business run by one of his best friends.

These facts once again show the vested private interests which wield power and concentrate wealth in their own hands. They expose the nature of these anachronistic arrangements and underline the necessity for the people themselves to be sovereign.

The Commonwealth and all Britain's Neo-Colonial Ties Must be Brought to an End

Workers' Daily Internet Edition, September 22, 2000

Barbados renounces the monarchy and swears in its first President, Dame Sandra Mason, November 30, 2021.

The Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, delivered a speech to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association today, 22 September, in which he attempted to justify the continued existence of the reactionary Commonwealth.

The Emancipation Statue standing in Bridgetown, Barbados.

It was fitting that Robin Cook should commence his speech by boasting about the alleged merits of the British parliamentary system or 'westminster model' which, he claimed, has been 'the starting point for many democratic systems around the world.' Rather the export of the 'westminster model' has prevented the empowerment of the people of many countries around the world, just as it does in Britain, but it has also been one of the neo-colonial arrangements facilitating continual economic and political domination of many of the world's poorest countries by Britain and the other big powers.

It is through the Commonwealth that Britain continues to interfere in the political, economic and military affairs of member states, many of them former British colonies. The basis of what is referred to as the 'modern' Commonwealth is the Harare declaration of 1991, which enshrines the values of the Paris Charter signed by the countries of Europe, Canada and the US in 1990. This document was a declaration by the bourgeoisie of the big powers, under the sway of the monopolies, of their intent to impose on the whole world their conception of 'free market economy', political pluralism and human rights and to enslave the whole world with these Eurocentric values. The government has already declared that it wishes the Commonwealth to play a stronger role in defence of these values even if this means intervening in the internal affairs of member states in order, as Cook explained 'to prevent conflict and prevent constitutional unrest before they happen, rather than acting after the event.'

In his speech, the Foreign Secretary claimed that the Commonwealth 'could help its members adapt to the challenges of globalisation and change' and suggested that it could become a Commonwealth of 'prosperity and opportunity'. But the polarisation between rich and poor in the Commonwealth is increasing just as it is in the rest of the world. It can never be a 'partnership' of equals, containing as it does some of the world's poorest countries and dominated by Britain one of the richest. Cook's recipe for 'prosperity and opportunity', an increase in enslaving 'aid', strengthening the role of the 'private sector' within the Commonwealth, and championing globalisation, show that his concern is for prosperity and opportunity for the monopolies and the continued exploitation of the human and other resources of the countries of the Commonwealth..

The Commonwealth remains an integral part of the Labour government's reactionary aim to 'Make Britain Great Again'. What must be demanded is that all neo-colonial ties such as those maintained through the Commonwealth are brought to an end.

The Commonwealth Remains a Means to Perpetuate Neo-Colonialism and is an Anachronism in the 21st Century

Workers' Weekly, March 25, 2017

The government has recently made great efforts to strengthen the neo-colonial ties that exist in the so-called Commonwealth, the organisation of some fifty-two states around the world, most of which were former British colonies. Such plans, especially those involving African countries, are apparently such a significant aspect of the new post-Brexit "Global Britain" that some government officials began referring to them as "Empire 2.0", a phrase that subsequently appeared in the press, ahead of the inaugural summit of Commonwealth trade ministers held in London last week. At the same time, the government used the occasion of "Commonwealth Day" to promote the idea that the Commonwealth is more of a club of equals than a means for the rich and powerful to perpetuate their domination over millions of people throughout the world. Already preparations are being made for the Commonwealth heads of government meeting, which will take place next April in London, as an occasion to further strengthen this domination.

The recent Commonwealth summit, attended by ministers and delegations from thirty-five countries, was organised by the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC), which describes itself as "the private sector's gateway to doing business in the Commonwealth". Its membership includes both governments and big monopolies, many with major interests in Africa, such as Gem Diamonds, Firestone Diamonds and Standard Chartered. According to reports CWEIC is, amongst other things, particularly interested in breaking into Commonwealth healthcare markets. Over sixty representatives from big business attended the summit. The involvement of the CWEIC exposes the entire purpose of the summit and contradicts the view, promoted by the government, that the Commonwealth is an organisation of equals, or that it is concerned with an equal claim on common wealth.

The Commonwealth is especially important because of the influence that Britain exerts over many of its members through so-called "aid" and other neo-colonial ties, including economic domination by the big monopolies and financial institutions. The Commonwealth constitutes an enormous market as its member states have a combined population of 2.4 billion people, nearly half of whom are under 25. Latest economic indicators show that intra-Commonwealth trade has grown faster than the global average over the recent period, and is projected to be worth $1 trillion per year by 2020. According to the IMF, some countries' imports are likely to grow even faster in the next five years, including those of several African countries such as Mozambique, Ghana and Sierra Leone, as well as countries such as India, Bangladesh and Brunei. However, although the wealth generated within the geographic boundaries of this organisation may be produced by the working people of many countries, they do not have first claim on it, nor is it even distributed amongst the member states. Rather, the Commonwealth is politically dominated by Britain, the former colonial power, although it also includes other economically powerful states and former "Dominions" such as Canada and Australia. It also includes two of the BRICS, South Africa and India, as well as some of the world's poorest countries.

It is evident that the government has plans to develop both an African free trade zone and a wider Commonwealth free trade zone, which will be of most benefit to the big monopolies and financial institutions. Such proposals were part of the agenda of the recent summit, which also attempted to unite all its participants around the notion that neo-liberal globalisation is the answer to all of the world's ills rather than a major contributing factor. Championing the benefits of "free trade" was also the main theme of the speech by Liam Fox, Minister for International Trade, who spoke of neo-liberal globalisation as "liberation from poverty" and warned of the dangers of any form of protectionism. Even so, some smaller countries pointed out that the pursuit of so-called free trade was mainly in the interests of Britain and the other more economically powerful states. They stressed that free trade often meant the freedom of the big powers to dominate smaller economies and the prevention of the smaller economies from access to overseas markets and required financial services, most notably through the practice of what is known as de-risking.

It is evident that the government is trying to bind the Commonwealth ever-more closely to its aims, to strengthen the economic and geopolitical objectives of the big monopolies and financial institutions. It wishes to tighten its neo-colonial grip on the members of the Commonwealth and demand allegiance to the same British values, the values of neo-liberal globalisation that best serve the needs of big business and finance. In short, it wishes to turn the clock back to the days of empire, in a vain attempt to make Britain "great" again. However, although the Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson, might be nostalgic about colonialism in Africa, the peoples of Africa and other parts of the world will not subject themselves to "Empire 2.0". Nor will other big and emerging powers, both those in the Commonwealth, as well as those outside it. What must be demanded is that the Commonwealth and other remnants of empire are completely dismantled and consigned to the rubbish bin of history.

On January 21, 2023, the Stop the War Coalition is organising a Trade Union Conference, The World at War: A Trade Union Issue [1]. They announced it this year so as to address workers everywhere as well as the trade union conference season of 2022. Stop the War was also to hold public meetings at the TUC Congress, before that was postponed following the Queen's death [2], and other trade union conferences. In announcing the conference they point out: "We are living in a more and more dangerous world. The war in Ukraine is a disaster for the people there and effectively pits two nuclear armed great powers against each other. It could escalate at any time and is already causing economic chaos. Meanwhile, the US is ramping up the pressure on China, with full support from the British government and other NATO allies."

"We have called this conference because we believe that it is always working people who are the first victims of war and that the record sums being spent on arms and the military should be redirected to public services, to the NHS, social care and our crumbling schools. We believe that the slogan 'cut warfare not welfare' should be taken up by the whole of the trade union movement."

"The conference is open to all trade unionists. We urge you to register but also to spread the word in your branches and trades councils."

Also, in July the following resolution "Peace Is Union Business" was passed at RMT's Annual General Meeting in Birmingham. Stop the War encouraged all trade union branches across the country to adopt this resolution, or that of their own [3]. We also urge all trade unionists to register and spread the word about our first ever Trade Union Conference coming up in January 2023. They conclude: "Every effort should be made to pursue peaceful relations between countries through negotiations and disarmament."

PEACE IS UNION BUSINESS

"That this AGM notes with grave concern the NATO summit meeting in Madrid (28-30 June 2022) confirmed an escalation of military spending, troop build-ups and further expansion of this nuclear-armed bloc with a seemingly endless supply of money poured into weapons development and procurement including:

expanding the numbers of NATO troops from 40,000 to well over 300,000;

expanding NATO's role at the request of the Spanish government to include the global south, including control over migration from sub-Saharan Africa and the Sahel region (north Africa) following the tragic deaths last week of 23 African migrants entering Melilla, Spain's colonial enclave in north Africa;

US President Biden's announcement that the US would establish a permanent

military base in Poland, a brigade in Romania, air missile systems in Italy and Germany and two additional F-35 squadrons based in the UK;

British PM, Johnson's announcement on 30 June 2022, that UK defence spending will increase from 2.3% of GDP in 2022 to 2.5% of GDP in 2030 when wages are being held below inflation with taxes and energy prices rocketing contributing to a cost-of- living crisis.

These latest announcements of military escalation follow the announcement in September 2021 by the governments of Australia, the UK and US of the so-called AUKUS pact, which provides nuclear-powered submarines to Australia as part of a military alliance with the US and UK.

RMT's sister union, the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) has warned these submarines use highly enriched uranium ideal for nuclear weapons. The Australian government has repeatedly tried to set up nuclear waste dumps on First Nations land. This will intensify that pressure. The AUKUS pact also contributes significantly to the likelihood of nuclear proliferation and the threat of nuclear war.

Workers have no interest in war with China, Russia, or any other country. Every effort should be made to pursue peaceful relations between countries through negotiations and disarmament.

RMT stands in solidarity with trade unionists and workers in all countries opposing war and wasteful, environmentally harmful, military spending. We pledge our opposition to development of nuclear submarines in Australia, to NATO expansion and to Boris Johnson's [now Liz Truss's] disastrous pledge to further increase military spending by the UK government instead of addressing growing poverty, homelessness and hunger in Britain."

24 Aug 2022 by RMT

Notes
1. The World at War: A Trade Union Issue - Stop the War TU Conference 2023
https://www.stopwar.org.uk/events/the-world-at-war-a-trade-union-issue-stop-the-war-tu-conference-2023/
2. TUC Congress 2022 Stop the War Fringe Meeting: The World at War - A Trade Union Issue Tuesday 13 September - 5.00pm , Brighton
Postponed until further notice.
3.Stop the War's draft resolution on Ukraine
https://www.stopwar.org.uk/article/no-war-on-ukraine-trade-union-resolution