Concern for Queen after Charles tests positive for COVID
Concern for the Queen’s health has mounted after she was in direct contact with the Prince of Wales, who has tested positive for COVID.
The Queen is not displaying any symptoms, but Buckingham Palace refused to confirm whether she had tested positive or negative, citing medical privacy.
The 95-year-old is believed to have spent time with Charles on Tuesday when her eldest son was carrying out an investiture on her behalf at her Windsor Castle home.
Watch: Prince Charles tests positive for COVID for second time as Palace sources say he recently met with Queen
It is the second time the heir to the throne has contracted the virus, first doing so in March 2020 when he had mild symptoms and lost his sense of smell and taste.
Prince Charles has also recently spent time with Priti Patel and Rishi Sunak.
A message on the prince’s official Twitter page read: “This morning The Prince of Wales has tested positive for COVID-19 and is now self-isolating.
“HRH is deeply disappointed not to be able to attend today’s events in Winchester and will look to reschedule his visit as soon as possible.”
The Duchess of Cornwall has so far tested negative, and both of them have been triple vaccinated.
The night before testing positive Charles was with the Duchess of Cornwall at a reception at the British Museum to celebrate the work of the British Asian Trust.
Also in attendance and pictured with him were chancellor Rishi Sunak and home secretary Priti Patel.
Charles was pictured shaking multiple people's hands during the event.
In a speech to the trust’s supporters and ambassadors, the prince spoke about the “devastating impact” the pandemic has had on south Asia.
Using his pet name for Camilla, which means “darling” or “beloved” in Urdu, he said: “I cannot quite believe it is almost two years to the day that both my Mehabooba and myself were able to be with all of you to celebrate the work of the British Asian Trust.
“Since then, across the globe, there has been terrible loss of life from this dreadful pandemic and we have especially seen the devastating impact throughout south Asia.”
Camilla later said it was “lucky” she has tested negative after her husband returned a positive result for COVID-19.
Speaking to Willie Hartley Russell, high sheriff for Berkshire, during a visit to Thames Valley Partnership on Thursday, she said: “He’s diagnosed now. Luckily (she’s negative). I’ve taken it so many times.”
He added: “It gets a bit pointless, doesn’t it?” and Camilla agreed.
Speaking to the PA news agency afterwards, Hartley Russell said: “She said, ‘Yes unfortunately he had tested positive again. I said he must be building up lots of antibodies.
“She said something like he’s finding it a bit tiresome to have got it again, but she said it in a light-hearted way.”
The development comes just days after the Queen marked her Platinum Jubilee by expressing her “sincere wish” that the Duchess of Cornwall would be Queen Camilla at Charles’s side when he is one day king.
The wife of a king automatically becomes a queen consort and only a change in legislation would prevent her from doing so.
But when the former Mrs Parker Bowles married Charles 17 years ago, aides insisted she did not want to be queen and “intended” to be known as princess consort instead.
Camilla was blamed for the breakdown of the prince’s marriage to Diana, Princess of Wales.
But in the decades after the divorce, the untimely death of Diana in 1997 and Camilla’s acceptance into 'The Firm', the public mood towards the duchess has softened, and she has gradually taken on a more prominent position within the royal family.
