First Minister: Any protests in Cardiff for royal visit will be 'footnote' to events
The King and Queen Consort are visiting Wales for the first time
First Minister Mark Drakeford has said that any protests in the Welsh capital will be a “footnote” to the main proceedings, as the King prepares to visit Wales.
The former Prince of Wales and the Queen Consort will visit Cardiff on Friday, as part of UK-wide visits following the death of the Queen.
Discussing planned protests during the visit, Mark Drakeford said: “People have a legitimate right to protest and there are a variety of views.
However, he said this was not the week that such objections and debate needs “to surface”.
“But people have that right and I think it will be exercised with restraint and it will be a footnote to the dominant feelings of the day.”
Mr Drakeford also stressed that he had confidence in the police to deal with protests in a “proportionate” way, amid questions about the handling of demonstrators in other parts of the UK.
“It should be proportionate. It should recognise the rights that people have.
“I have every confidence in the South Wales Police who have dealt with this sort of event many times very successfully.”
Mark Drakeford also said he has spoken to the new Prince of Wales but not discussed the investiture proceedings directly.
However, he appeared to strongly suggest that the investiture need not follow the pattern set by the ceremony that saw Charles made prince of Wales in 1969.
"The Wales of 2022 is very different to the Wales of 1969.
"I don't think looking back at that event and thinking of it as some sort of pattern that you would wish to pick up and copy, I don't think that would be the right way to go about things.
"I think the new Prince of Wales will want to take time to establish himself in that role, to work out where he can make the most contribution to creating a successful Wales of the future."
Of his conversation with Prince William, Mr Drakeford said: "He did say to me that he wanted to take on his new responsibilities slowly, that he wanted to give time for his own knowledge of Wales the things that matter in the Wales of today, to be fully established, for him to think about where his own contribution could most powerfully be made.
And I thought that was very sensible as an approach."