Will Meghan, Harry meet the Queen? Lilibet Diana might not see great-grandmom on Xmas
In what will be Meghan Markle's first trip to the United Kingdom, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have offered to fly to London in the coming months to introduce their daughter Lilibet Diana to her great-grandmother. However, there is a big chance that the couple might change their minds, especially after a public poll showed an increasing number of British people having an unfavorable opinion of the pair.
On Sunday, the Sun reported that the Sussexes have shown keenness in flying down to the UK to have the 94-year-old monarch meet her great-granddaughter. However, the exact date of such a meeting has not been decided yet. Lilibet Diana, who has been named after the queen herself as well as Prince Harry's mother, the late Princess Diana, was born in the United States and has never met the queen. It remains unclear if the couple will spend Christmas with the queen as they have skipped spending the occasion with the royal family for the past two years.
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Harry and Meghan invited for Christmas?
A source told the Sun: “Harry and Meghan have made this offer but a lot of people are shocked by the sheer nerve of it. They may genuinely want to see the Queen but it’s breathtaking given what they’ve put her through this year. Her Majesty’s staff have not responded so far. In fact, there has also been discussion about Christmas — and whether an invitation should be sent to Harry and Meghan after they spurned one last year.”
The Sussexes did not attend Christmas last year due to the coronavirus pandemic. And in 2019, they spent Christmas in Canada instead of with the royal family. Harry has extended an "olive branch" to mending ties with the royal family recently as he said that he and Meghan hoped to have a christening for their four-month-old daughter at Windsor Castle.
Harry and Meghan's popularity at all-time low
However, there is another factor that might derail Lilibet's meeting with her great-grandmother — the fact that Harry and Meghan's popularity with Brits has plunged to a record low, according to UK pollsters YouGov. This was always clear among the older generation of Brits whose loyalties lie with Queen Elizabeth II and the monarchy. And now, popularity seems to be hitting record lows among younger citizens as well.
In the latest poll, Prince Harry is viewed positively by 47 percent of 18 to 24-year-olds and negatively by 44 percent. This gives him a net approval of +3 percent, a drop of 28 points. Meghan Markle is viewed positively by 50 percent of 18 to 24-year-olds and negatively by 40 percent, leaving her with a net favorability of +10 percent, a drop of 13 points, in the latest data. Just to provide a contrast, just months before Megxit, in October 2019, 73 percent of Brits across all age groups said they viewed Harry positively and 55 percent were positive about Meghan.
If seen as a whole, Meghan is liked by 26 percent of the British population across all age groups and disliked by 65 percent. This gives her a net approval rating of -39 percent. The Duke of Sussex, on the other hand, is currently liked by 34 percent and disliked by 59 percent across all age groups, giving him a net favorability of -25 percent. At the same time, Queen Elizabeth II is viewed positively by 80 percent of people and negatively by 13 percent across all ages in the most recent YouGov data. This gives her a net rating of +67 percent.
In the survey, she was liked by 59 percent and disliked by 27 percent of 18 to 24-year-olds. /as a result, her net figures were +32 percent making her more popular among young people than Harry and Meghan. Even Prince William beat the pair as he was liked by 78 percent and disliked by just 16 percent of people across all age groups, giving him a net favorability of +62 percent.