Political division provides the backdrop as the Queen opened Scotland's parliament
Her majesty provided a clear message to MSPs during her speech, as she talked about recovering from the pandemic and the climate crisis.
Monday 4 October 2021 09:37, UK
The Queen's summer break was over and it was back to the sensitive official duties.
No one expected the word independence to be uttered in the chamber of the Scottish parliament but as so often has been the case in the Queen's historic reign, political division, this time over the future of the union, provided the backdrop to Her Majesty's message to MSP's.
It is understood the speech is written in close conjunction with the Scottish government but there were clear messages that the Queen wanted to deliver, that in many ways underpin her own style of leadership.
She talked about how the Scottish people will look to their political representatives for guidance as we "step out from adverse and uncertain times", encouraging them to continue to abide by the founding principles of wisdom, justice, compassion and integrity etched on to the mace that led the procession into the chamber.
With her words carefully chosen, there were also reminders of the challenges that lie ahead, she didn't allude to an independence referendum but did talk about recovering from the pandemic and the climate crisis.
All encapsulated in a knowing sentence from the monarch: "While some of you will have differences of opinion. I trust you will continue to work together."
As we've seen in recent months the Queen's great fondness for Scotland also shone through, in a touching moment she recalled the many happy memories in the country that she had with Prince Philip, who died in April.
It is a genuine warmth shared by the rest of the Royal Family, that we have again seen this summer through a string of visits north of the border.
But after getting their fingers burnt around the last Scottish referendum in 2014, with claims the Queen was too political, the Royal Family and their advisers will be very cautious of anything that may suggest their words or actions have deliberately changed to try and influence the debate around independence.
They won't like the reports that their visits this summer may be part of an unspoken campaign to counter calls for a divided union.
Outside of the parliament, the split in views was clear as on one side of the building a woman told Sky News she hoped this would be the last time that the Queen would open a session of parliament, that by the next Scotland would be independent.
While across the other side another woman said it spoke volumes that so many had come out to see the monarch.
As the cars carrying the Queen, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall drove away a small crowd booed.
It's rare to hear that on a royal visit, but one thing is for certain you could not find anyone more experienced at navigating the potentially bumpy political road that lies ahead than a monarch preparing to mark her platinum jubilee next year.
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