Prince William urges the nation to "come together" ahead of Brexit

The Duke of Cambridge urged the public to “come together in times of trouble and work for the common good,” just weeks before Britain is set to leave the EU on March 29.

Prince William, 36, appeared to allude to Brexit during a speech at Belfast Music Hall on Wednesday night.

He praised Olympic hero Dame Mary Peters, who has been appointed to the Order of the Garter, saying: “Mary Peters, is not only one of the United Kingdom’s sporting legends, she’s also inspired generation after generation to come together in times of trouble and work for the common good – a lesson I hope many of us can learn from.”

His comments come after the Queen called for people to show “respect” and the need for a “coming together” at a Women’s Institute meeting last month.

Her Majesty is impartial on political matters but there were also thinly veiled references to Brexit in her Christmas speech:

She spoke about treating each other with respect “even with the most deeply held differences” and how it is “always a good first step towards greater understanding.”

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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are on a two-day visit to Northern Ireland.

Yesterday the focus was on how sport is helping young people and the local community come together, with stops at Windsor Park football stadium in Belfast and charity Extern’s Roscor Youth Village, where the couple got involved in a number of outdoors activities.

Last night at the concert hall Kate and William also took turns pulling pints behind the bar, to the delight of their audience.

On Thursday they will spend the day in Ballymena.