World leaders have also been told they cannot use their own state cars to attend the funeral at Westminster Abbey on September 19 — and will instead be bussed en masse from a location in west London. “Can you imagine Joe Biden on the bus?” A London-based foreign ambassador complained via WhatsApp message early Sunday. Official documents obtained by POLITICO also confirm that only heads of state and their spouses or partners from each country have been invited to attend the funeral, which is shaping up to be one of the most important international events the UK has hosted in recent times. Westminster Abbey will be so full for the event that it will be impossible for more than one senior representative per country and their other half to attend, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) lamented in its official protocol message on the event. . In the document, sent to foreign embassies late on Saturday night, the ministry said it “regrets that, due to limited space at the state funeral and related events, no other members of the chief guest’s family, staff or entourage allowed to be accepted’. Heads of state who are unable to attend may choose someone else as their official representative, such as a head of government or a senior minister. According to the same document, King Charles III will host a reception for all overseas leaders at Buckingham Palace the night before the funeral. Visiting heads of state will be able to attend the Queen’s burial and sign the book of condolence at Lancaster House immediately afterwards. At Lancaster House, foreign leaders will be able to pay tributes to the late Queen of up to three minutes, which will be recorded for the media. On the day of the funeral, the heads of state and their partners will arrive at Westminster Abbey by coach from a location in west London, where “due to tight security and road restrictions” they will be asked to leave their cars. “Multiple and comprehensive levels of security will be in place across London and at all official venues used for state funerals and related events,” a second FCDO document detailing logistical arrangements for those traveling from overseas states. In accordance with the government’s mourning period rules and “due to the extensive ceremonial schedule associated with the state funeral and logistical challenges, requests for bilateral agreements will not be considered in this case,” the FCDO warned in the note. After the funeral, foreign leaders will walk to Dean’s Yard, still inside the abbey, to attend a reception hosted by Foreign Secretary James Cleverley, after which they will return by coach to west London to collect their cars .
No private jets, please
“Wherever possible,” the FCDO advised, foreign leaders should arrive in the UK on commercial flights, warning that London’s Heathrow Airport would not be available for private flight arrangements or aircraft parking. Those leaders who insist on traveling by private jet should head to “less busy airports” around London, the FCDO added. The use of helicopter transport between airports and venues has been banned “due to the number of flights currently operating”, the ministry said. And in an all-too-familiar message to weary passengers using UK airports this year, the FCDO also warned that “unforeseen events may require commercial and private flights to divert from their intended airport of arrival”.
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