Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Aug 04, 2025

A right royal own goal: Queen oversteps the mark with vaccine comments

A right royal own goal: Queen oversteps the mark with vaccine comments

The Queen has implied that Britons who do not wish to take a Covid-19 vaccine are selfish, saying people should think of others and not themselves. Breaking a long tradition of neutrality, the monarch has joined the orthodoxy.
It’s arguably the biggest faux-pas in the 69-year reign of Queen Elizabeth II. Whatever people’s feelings about the monarchy in general, it’s fair to say that Her Majesty has generally been accorded respect – not least because of the way she has kept out of politics and avoided expressing her opinions on matters which divide the country. Or rather, countries.

The Queen, lest we forget, is not just the head of state in Britain, but also in the Commonwealth, which has a combined population of 2.4 billion people. She has a duty to represent all her subjects – and, by and large, she has done that pretty well since 1952.

But now she is strongly implying that those who don’t get vaccinated are selfish. “It is obviously difficult for people if they’ve never had a vaccine... but they ought to think of other people rather than themselves,” she said on a Zoom call with four NHS chiefs.

Ardent republicans will note the obvious irony of one of the richest women in the world, who has lived a life of great luxury and whose private estate has invested millions of pounds offshore, accusing some of her subjects of not thinking of other people. But you don’t have to be an ardent republican to feel that the Queen’s comments are a bit ‘rich’ to say the least. Even hitherto staunch royalists on my Twitter timeline are saying the same. For the Queen to attack her subjects in such a way is quite unprecedented.

People may have lots of reasons for not wishing to be vaccinated, and to accuse them wholesale of being selfish is simply unfair. There may be medical grounds why people can’t have a jab. They may decline because of their religious beliefs.

They may feel there is no medical need. They may – in the case of the new Covid vaccines – be quite legitimately concerned about the speed of the roll-out and the full indemnity given by the government to the vaccine manufacturers. Or fear that high vaccine take-up would make inevitable the implementation of freedom-destroying ‘vaccine passports’ – which would be the gateway for the introduction of a Chinese-style digitalised, restricted-access, bio-ID social credit system.

To imply that people who don’t want to be vaccinated are simply being selfish is emotional manipulation.

The Queen’s shocking intervention is only the latest episode in a relentless establishment campaign against ‘anti-vaxxers’, a group which has become the latest hate figure for much of the media, and whose definition is conveniently vague.

Over the last few weeks, as ‘anti-vaxxers’ have been witch-hunted by the latter-day equivalents of Matthew Hopkins, the gruesome 17th-century ‘Witchfinder General’, Britons have come under extraordinary pressure from the state to take the Covid ‘jab’. Members of the public have been bombarded with calls and letters from the NHS and/or their local health centres urging them to get vaccinated.

A whole host of ‘celebrity influencers’ have been taking to social media to urge people to get inoculated. We’ve never seen anything like this before in our lives. Certainly it never happens when the flu vaccination season starts! Now even the Queen has joined in with the gas-lighting and finger-pointing.

In a free society, deciding whether or not to get vaccinated should be an individual’s own choice. There should certainly be no bullying or coercing of that individual, either through ‘carrots’ or ‘sticks’ to ‘toe the line’. But I fear that since March 2020, and the onset of Covid-authoritarianism, Britain has ceased to be a free country. It’s certainly a country I no longer recognise.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
Matt Taibbi Slams Media for Role in Russiagate Narrative
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
UK's Online Safety Law: A Front for Censorship
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Brazil Demanding Presidential Resignation
Parents Abandon Child at Barcelona Airport Over Passport Issue
Mystery Surrounds Death of Brazilian Woman with iPhones Glued to Her Body
Bus Driver Discovers Toddler Hidden in Suitcase in New Zealand
Switzerland Celebrates 734 Years of Independence Amid Global Changes
U.S. Opens Official Investigation into Former Trump Prosecutor Jack Smith
Leaked audio of Canada's new PM Mark Carney admitting the truth about the Net Zero agenda: "We're gonna make a lot of money off of this."
China Enforces Comprehensive Ban on Cryptocurrency Activities
Absolutely 100% Realistic EVO Series Doll by EXDOLL (Chinese Company) used mainly for carnal purposes
World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab: "In this new world, we must accept... total transparency. You have to get used to it. You have to behave accordingly. But if you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be afraid."
Meet Mufti Hamid Patel, head of Office for Standards in Education in Pakistan
George Soros tells the World Economic Forum: "President Trump is a con man and the ultimate narcissist, who wants the world to revolve around him."
Hamas are STARVING the hostages.
Decline in Tourism in Majorca Amidst Ongoing Anti-Tourism Protests
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
Poland Begins Excavation at Dziemiany After New Clue to World War II‑Era Nazi Treasure
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
×