Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed King Charles III has received an invitation to visit Australia.
Mr Albanese made the revelation on Monday as he prepared to head to London for the King’s coronation, which will take place at Westminster Abbey on Saturday.
The Prime Minister has not yet confirmed whether His Majesty has taken up the offer to travel Down Under for the first time as monarch.
But Mr Albanese said he was keen to see the King visit Australia – where he is head of state – along with other members of the royal family.
The last royal to make the trip to Australia was Princess Anne, who made a brief stopover in February and undertook a range of official engagements in April 2022.
The King’s most recent trip to Australia was in April 2018 as the then Prince of Wales, accompanied by his wife Camilla for the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
Mr Albanese was last week accused by royal biographer Robert Jobson of failing to follow royal protocol by not issuing the King with an official invitation to visit.
The Prime Minister previously met with King Charles in London in September last year while in the United Kingdom for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
“I would like to see the King come to Australia. And I’ve invited the King,” Mr Albanese told reporters in Brisbane.
“And other members of the Royal Family are always welcome here.
“I look forward, later tonight after I visit Darwin, I’ll be travelling to London to represent Australia at the Coronation.
“That’s an important event. And it’s important that Australia be represented.”
Governor-General David Hurley will join the Prime Minister at the historic event, with both to be among one of the first groups to enter Westminster Abbey in the procession.
Mr Albanese last week also revealed the group of “outstanding Australians” that will represent the nation at the King’s coronation.
Australian soccer superstar Sam Kerr will be the country’s flagbearer, while musician Nick Cave and comedian and presenter Adam Hills will also be in attendance.
Other Australian attendees at the coronation are Leanne Benjamin, Jasmine Coe, Dr Daniel Nour, Yasmin Poole, Emily Regan, Minette Salmon, Claire Spencer, Professor Merryn Voysey, Corporal Daniel Keighran, Richard Joyes and Yvonne Kenny.
Australian Simon Abney-Hastings, the 15th Earl of Loudoun, has been given the role of carrying the Golden Spurs in the procession.
Celebrations are set to take place across Australia to mark the coronation, with buildings and monuments to be lit in royal purple on Saturday and Sunday.
A national 21 gun salute will take place on Parliament House’s forecourt by Australia’s Federation Guard on the Sunday along with a flypast conducted by the Air Force.
Source: skynews.com.au
