King Charles issues surprise apology amid backlash over new honour
King Charles made a surprising admission during a meeting at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday, which left an indelible mark.
The monarch held an important investiture ceremony in which he granted Knighthood to the Labour’s mayor of London, Sadiq Khan.
The new honour had been announced in January as part of the New Year’s Honours, but it was received with immense backlash.
Around 220,000 people signed a petition against the award in protest claiming that crimes rates had gone up since Khan had become the mayor in 2016.
However, despite the backlash, during the ceremony, the monarch made a surprise apology to the mayor, now dubbed as Sir Sadiq Khan, for delaying the honour.
“I have got the pleasure of working closely with the King,” Khan said, via The Telegraph. “We were just comparing who’s a bigger workaholic.”
He added, “[The King] was very chuffed that he managed to personally give me this honour and he actually apologised for it taking so long – which is not a problem at all.”
Given that he is a Pakistani immigrant, Khan revealed that it was a “big deal” and a “great day for his family”, adding that his mum was “emotional” during the ceremony.
Khan – who is now the first major of London to be knighted – was nominated for the honour the Prime Minster himself. He received his knighthood for political and public service.
“The London promise: if you work hard, and get a helping hand, you can achieve anything,” he said. “[I am] immensely proud to receive a knighthood from His Majesty The King.”