Canada’s newest prime minister has officially met his King.
As part of a whistlestop visit to the UK and to France, Prime Minister Mark Carney had an audience with King Charles at Buckingham Palace.
The King offered his congratulations to his new Prime Minister, who was only officially sworn in on March 14. The Prime Minister replied: “Your Majesty. Lovely to see you…Thank you very much.”
In a moment of levity before the conversation began, Mark Carney revealed that his Order of Canada pin had broken on the tarmac upon his arrival in the UK—and King Charles offered his own pin as a replacement.
Mark Carney had previously announced that he would visit the UK and France to strengthen ties. In addition to meeting The King, while in London, Mark Carney also met his UK counterpart, Sir Keir Starmer, to discuss “transatlantic security, growing the AI sector, and the strong commercial relationship between Canada and the United Kingdom,” according to the Prime Minister’s Office.
After returning to Canada from his European visit, Mark Carney will also visit Nunavut.
In a statement on the Canadian Prime Minister’s official website, he said: “Canada was built upon a union of peoples – Indigenous, French, and British. My visit to France and the United Kingdom will strengthen trade, commercial, and defence ties with two of our strongest and most reliable partners, and my visit to Nunavut will be an opportunity to bolster Canada’s Arctic sovereignty and security, and our plan to unlock the North’s full economic potential.”
Mark Carney was previously Governor of the Bank of England—the first non-Briton appointed to the role in the Bank’s 330-year history. Prior to, and following this appointment, he held similar posts in Canada and advised the government through the COVID-19 pandemic.
The meeting between King Charles and Mark Carney is the latest instance of ‘soft power’ being deployed to showcase The King’s support for Canada; one of the largest Commonwealth realms.
In recent weeks, King Charles has been photographed in full military dress with Canadian decorations. He has also met former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at his personal residence of Sandringham and presented a new sword to the Usher of the Black Rod of the Senate of Canada, created for his accession in 2022 as King of Canada.
