A lot of people recently have been banging on about Jeremy Corbyn and the paradox between his Republicanism and the fact that, in order to join the Privy Council he will need to kneel before the Queen.
Let's think about this for a bit. What would he lose from following the tradition and kneeling in front of the Queen? And what will he gain?
Well, he will lose face if he kneels. But he gets access to security briefings. If I were leader of the Labour Party, I would prefer the access. And bugger the loss of face.
And now, what would he gain from not kneeling? And what would he lose? He wouldn't gain very much. The Monarchy wouldn't crumble. In fact, if Corbyn spoke to the Queen, I'm sure they could have a lovely polite conversation. He wouldn't sulk in a corner and refuse to engage with her.
But.
If there was a vote in the Houses of Parliament to abolish the Monarchy, JC would vote in favour. That doesn't mean he has to snub the Queen. He can't dismantle the Monarchy single-handedly. And that is why he will bend the knee. It's a symbolic tradition, that doesn't mean anything in particular, but it will give him access to information. I hope he takes the pragmatic approach, and he can always take steps to modernise the process afterwards if it is that offensive. But how many people actually pledge allegiance to the Queen and join the Privy Council? I think he should choose his battles.
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