General Election 2015: Palace confirms Queen will not pull out of giving speech if Cameron tries to lead country with minority government

There were fears that her reputation could suffer if she gave a speech which could be rejected by MPs voting against the government

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II smiles during a visit to Richmond Castle to attend the amalgamation parade of The Queen's Royal Lancers and 9th/12th Royal Lancers, in Richmond, England Saturday May 2, 2015 (AP)

Buckingham Palace has denied reports that the Queen had considered pulling out of giving the Queen’s Speech if David Cameron were to attempt to lead the country with a minority Conservative government. Fears that her reputation could suffer if she gave a speech which could be rejected by MPs voting against the government prompted royal officials to consider finding someone else to do the job.

Concern over such a scenario had led to Baroness Stowell, the Leader of the Lords, being considered as a replacement according to a report citing unnamed “royal sources” in The Times.

It referred to a previous article in which one such source had expressed concern that if the Queen’s Speech, due to be given in the House of Lords on May 27, were to become “a mechanism for testing a particular prime minister’s control... you wouldn’t want the Queen to be politicised by giving that speech.”

However, Her Majesty’s thinking has “evolved” in recent days and she will now do the speech herself, irrespective of the outcome of the election, claimed The Times.

But responding to the claims, a Buckingham Palace spokesperson told The Independent: “The Queen will give the Queen’s speech as she has done throughout her reign. So no change.” Emphasising the point, they added: “Throughout her reign the Queen has given this speech and it is her intention to give it this time. It will be the same as previous elections.”

And Professor Robert Hazell, director of the Constitution Unit at University College London, said: “There are no plans for anyone other than Her Majesty the Queen to deliver the Queen’s Speech. She will do whatever is advised by the Prime Minister, whatever the merits of the Speech, ad whatever its prospects.”

There is a precedent for the monarch to give the speech of a doomed government, he added: “In 1924 King George V read out Baldwin’s King’s Speech, knowing that it would be defeated by Labour plus Liberals, and that Baldwin would be forced to resign, and Macdonald would become Prime Minister.”

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