British government criticised by right-wingers for dropping ‘His Majesty’ from communications
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The British government is formally referred to as His Majesty's government, a reference to the monarch King Charles III.
PHOTO: REUTERS
LONDON – Britain’s government came under fire from right-wing politicians after it confirmed it had switched to using a logo bearing a “UK Government” branding instead of “His Majesty’s Government” in official communications.
The British government is formally referred to as His Majesty’s (HM) government, a reference to the monarch King Charles III.
Websites and other communications have previously carried a logo with “HM Government”.
But earlier this week, a Labour government minister confirmed that “a strategic decision has been made to adopt ‘UK Government’ as the primary branding for all public-facing communications”.
The move was on Feb 10 slammed by some opposition Conservative politicians who called it “disrespectful towards Britain’s history, culture and constitutional settlement”.
“How typical that Labour should be trying to quietly obliterate tradition,” said Tory politician Alex Burghart.
Under guidance by the previous Tory government, in power until 2024, the primary logo was the royal coat of arms alongside “HM Government”, and was meant to be used “wherever possible”.
A government spokesperson said the step was taken to provide greater “clarity”.
Anti-monarchy activist Graham Smith, who heads the pressure group Republic, told The Daily Telegraph newspaper: “It’s the right move and reflects their true purpose – serving the people, not the powerful.”
Mr Smith pointed to “falling” support for the monarchy since the latest batch of Jeffrey Epstein files was released in January, further revealing former prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s ties to the late US sex offender
A Savanta poll commissioned by Republic showed on Feb 9 that support for the monarchy stood at 45 per cent, lower than the 57 per cent to 59 per cent polled by YouGov in mid-January.
Another YouGov poll, carried out on behalf of Sky News, showed on Feb 11 that 45 per cent of respondents believed King Charles III had done all he could to distance himself from his brother, Mr Mountbatten-Windsor, who was stripped of royal titles in 2025 over his Epstein links.
Nearly 40 per cent said he should be doing more. AFP
