WHEN Prime Minister Scott Morrison finally decides whether he will attend a climate summit in Glasgow next month, it's doubtful Prince Charles will be figure greatly in his reckoning.
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Australians woke to the news on Tuesday morning that the heir to the throne had apparently taken aim at Mr Morrison's for not yet committing to attending the COP26 Summit, described by the prince as the "last chance saloon" for the environment.
For his part, Mr Morrison is said to be in two minds about another overseas trip because of the time he would be forced to spend in quarantine once he returned, having already done a few stints in quarantine over the past year and a half.
If he does not go the government is expected to send Foreign Minister Marise Payne in his place.
Not surprisingly, the federal opposition sees it somewhat differently, claiming Mr Morrison does not want to attend the summit because his government does not yet have a clear climate policy to share with the world.
What you see as the truth in all that likely depends on your political leanings but no one in Australia should be entirely comfortable with Prince Charles apparently having a view even worthy of being shared.
Prince Charles was being interviewed by the BBC when he was questioned about Mr Morrison's indecision over the summit, replying: "Is that what he says, is it?"
The prince's response suggested he had little or no knowledge that Mr Morrison may not be attending the summit and, indeed, had given the matter little or no thought.
And that's where it should have ended except for the fact Prince Charles is likely to be our nation's next head of state.
In that context any thoughts he has on the current PM or government suddenly carry some weight, but should they?
So just a few simple words during a 15-minute interview on entirely unrelated matters should again have Australians questioning the monarchy's relevance to us in this day and age.
Does our country really need to be still tied to a foreign institution, even one has relatively unobtrusive as the royal family?
Most of us should be less concerned with what Prince Charles thinks about Scott Morrison attending or not attending a climate summit than we should be with the question of why the prince might be asked about it at all in the first place.
What do you think?
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