Anti-monarchy group launches billboard campaign calling royal family ‘secretive’ and ‘divisive’

They have gone up in 12 cities across the UK including Manchester, Aberdeen and Newcastle

Billboard campaign calling for an end to the monarchy (Republc)

Anti-monarchy group Republic has launched a new billboard campaign calling for the abolition of the monarchy.

The campaigners, who want the Queen to be replaced with an “elected” head of state, have commissioned 12 billboards to go up across the UK this week, in cities including Aberdeen, Glasgow, Manchester, Newcastle and Leeds.

Each billboard carries the same message: “Secretive, divisive, undemocratic. Abolish the monarchy.”

Other cities that the billboards will be seen in are Portsmouth, Bootle, Motherwell, Renfrew, Stoke-on-Trent and two in Birmingham.

The group is currently crowdfunding for a further 15 billboards, which are planned to go up in September in London and Wales.

The campaign comes after a YouGov survey in May found that 41 per cent of young people aged between 18 and 24 believe Britain should have an elected head of state.

This is a decrease from previous figures in 2019 when 41 per cent of young people were in favour of the monarchy.

“With polls showing young people wanting an elected head of state, the succession of King Charles will be a major turning point in the monarchy’s history and in the growth of Britain’s republican movement,” Graham Smith, chief executive of Republic said.

“The Queen’s long reign has sustained support for the royals for decades. The Queen is the monarchy, the monarchy is the Queen. King Charles may inherit the throne, but he won’t inherit the respect and deference enjoyed by his mother,” Smith added.

However, YouGov’s survey found that the population as a whole still supports the monarchy. Of those surveyed, 61 per cent of Britons said they are in favour of the royal family, while 24 per cent would prefer an elected head of state.

Support for the monarchy is highest amongst the older generation, with 70 per cent of people aged between 50 and 64 saying they support the royal family.

Republic’s campaign also describes Prince Charles as “controversial, outspoken and unpopular”.

A separate YouGov survey found that Prince Charles’ popularity has grown in the last year, with 58 per cent of the public now having a positive view of him.