King Charles suffers 'embarrassing' snub from Australian politicians ahead of royal tour

King Charles and Queen Camilla kick off their nine day tour of Australia on Friday - however not one State Premier will greet the royal couple at a reception in Canberra on Ocotber 21

The King has faced an “embarrassing” snub after a host of senior politicians in Australia have refused to meet him in the nation’s capital next week.

The King and Queen kick off their nine day tour of Australia on Friday, attending a range of events aimed at fostering relations between communities, alongside highlighting their passion projects including the environment and helping domestic violence charities.

But not one State Premier will greet Charles and Camilla at a reception in Canberra on Ocotber 21, despite all being invited. The King is due to address the event attended by political and community leaders, as well as prominent Australians who have demonstrated outstanding achieve­ment in fields including the arts, culture, sport and health.

But Victoria state Premier Jacinta Allan today added her name today to those that have also turned down an opportunity to welcome the royal couple Down Under.

Spokesperson for the pro royal Australian Monarchists League, Bev McArthur, called the development “slap in the face” for the royal family.

“All premiers and ministers have sworn allegiance to our monarch, Charles III, and it is a monumental insult that they now spit in his hand extended in friendship,” she told the Herald Sun.

“This is a historic opportunity to unite Australia, to focus on charitable work and to give back to communities. Yet our immature politicians are clearly choosing to play politics.”

As the list of suspect excuses piled in, Queensland premier Steven Miles said he is working on his election campaign while a spokesman for Western Australia’s Premier, Roger Cook, reportedly said he had “other commitments”.

South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas has also excused himself from the event due to a regional cabinet meeting, as did New South Wales Premier Chris Minns, although he will reportedly attend several events with the King during his visit.

Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff will be on a US trade mission at the time. Victoria’s Deputy Premier, Ben Carroll, also said he will not attend, leaving Ms Allan’s parliamentary secretary, Nick Staikos, to take her place.

Royal sources called the move “deeply unprofessional”, although insisted the decisions would not affect the tour. One source said: “The King and Queen are incredibly excited to visit Australia and Samoa and are very much looking forward to getting out and meeting as many people as possible during their visit.”

Sources pointed to the fact the King had worked incredibly hard on his continued cancer treatment to get himself ready for the trip.

Charles, 75, was diagnosed with the disease in February and has been undergoing weekly treatment in London. Royal doctors are happy for the sovereign to pause his treatment while he is away.

It will be Charles’ 17th visit to Australia and his first to one of the 14 British realms where he is sovereign since becoming King in September 2022.

Victorian member of the opposition Liberal Party, Brad Rowswell, yesterday revealed that he wrote to Ms Allan in May appealing to her not to downplay the King and Queen’s visit.

He said: “Sometimes, leadership requires putting personal prejudice aside in the interests of the greater good.”

The latest development comes as it emerged the King has told republican campaigners he would not interfere if Australia one day voted to remove him as head of state.

Ahead of the trip, the Australian Republic Movement (ARM) had written to Buckingham Palace to request a meeting. In a reply, the King said it was a “matter for the Australian public” to decide.

Meanwhile, Mr Rowswell also accused the State leader of already presiding over failure after the state of Victoria made the wounding decision last year to reneged on its commitment to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

The state is facing a huge bill for another Commonwealth city to step in at the last minute and save the games which hang in the balance.

The Herald Sun reported Mr Rowswell said: “Sometimes, leadership requires putting personal prejudice aside in the interests of the greater good.

“Premier Allan represents a state that wholeheartedly ­embraces and supports King Charles as our head of state. Sending a junior Labor MP to represent the Premier on this occasion doesn’t pass the Pimm’s test.

“The decent and respectful thing to do would be to jump on a plane and give King Charles a warm Victorian welcome, or is she just too embarrassed to do so after her Commonwealth Games debacle?” Buckingham Palace has been contacted for comment.