It is no secret Her Majesty is getting older, she even has played a prominent role in planning her eventual death.
‘London Bridge’ is the code name for the plans that will take place from when The Queen dies to her funeral and has been in sorted out for many years now. However, ministers are now getting the run-through on what is expected of them. It was planned but does come right after Queen Elizabeth pulled out of an engagement at St Paul’s Cathedral last week.
The run-through done for the first time was named ‘Castle Dove’ had Theresa May’s senior cabinet ministers and Whitehall officials went over ‘D+1’, the day after The Queen dies.
Despite the Palace spokeswoman who said The Queen being ill was not a cause for concern, the protocol was completed on an “unprecedented” scale according to The Sunday Times.
When Queen Elizabeth did pull out of the engagement at St Paul’s, the spokeswoman said: “The Queen is feeling under the weather today and has decided not to attend this morning’s service at St Paul’s Cathedral marking the 200th anniversary of the Order of Michael and St George.”
In the end, Her Majesty’s cousin, the Duke of Kent, stepped in for The Queen. The Queen was well enough to travel to Windsor that afternoon to rest and has now travelled to Scotland for Holyrood Week.
The rehearsal also included how the Prime Minister would address the mourning public.
A source told The Sunday Times: “This is the first time different ministers have come together in one room. Previously it has only been officials.”
Additional, a cabinet minister said: “Things have clearly been stepped up because of the ageing process.”
Upon the actual death of The Queen, the Prime Minister, if not already awake, will be woken and informed straight-away by civil servants that “London Bridge is down.”
These four words will signify the death of one of the world’s most well-known leaders and kick off Operation London Bridge – a highly organised arrangement which will end with The Queen’s funeral.
The Foreign Office Global Response Centre will immediately let the 15 governments outwith the UK where the Queen is Head of State know. Following that, the message will be passed on to 36 other Commonwealth nations in which the Queen has served as a figurehead for many decades.
It won’t take long for this news to spread from very select world leaders to the entire world public. The news will be released to the global media simultaneously after BBC breaks the tragedy.
Additional reporting by Jordan Cavell
