Queen Elizabeth II may still get a yacht
Queen Elizabeth’s old yacht, Britannia, in dry dock last week. The ship, which left Royal service in 1997, is now a tourist attraction in Scotland. The Queen’s supporters want her to have a new one.
When I first blogged about this yesterday I didn't expect I would be blogging about it again. But the Queen is a special case and her Diamond Jubilee is a special occasion.
The idea of buying her a new yacht – the old one was decommissioned in 1997 and never replaced – was floated yesterday by Education Secretary Michael Gove. It was derided because Gove indicated public money could be used for the project.
That idea was scuppered by Prime Minister David Cameron. But today he endorsed the idea of private funds being used to buy the Queen a yacht. Two Canadian businessmen are reported to have already contributed £10 million pounds ($15.4 million) towards the estimated £60 million cost of the ship.
I don't know whether Downing Street reads Europa blog but I did suggest something similar yesterday. I thought Russian oligarch and Chelsea Football club owner Roman Abramovich might be a good touch.