The election results of the Conservative leadership contest will be declared on September 5 and whosoever is going to be the new PM will get a great chance to stay with the Queen for a weekend in Balmoral.
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Express.co.uk confirms it is customary for the new PM to visit the Queen in the Highlands in September and spend a weekend with the Queen. The new PM will get a chance to enjoy a relaxing picnic and attend other social events with the 96-year-old monarch at her Balmoral estate.
It is understood that her Majesty is not taking anything for granted over whether her invitation will be accepted or not. A challenging part of the entire weekend plan is Royal aides cannot plan anything unless they know who will be invited over. The choices rest between the hot favourites Liz Truss and her husband, accountant Hugh O'Leary and Rishi Sunak and his wife, millionaire fashion designer Akshata Murty.
Before welcoming and inviting over the new PM, her Majesty is expected to host an audience with outgoing PM Boris Johnson and his successor. She will briefly make a return down south for this audience – which is expected to be at Buckingham Palace rather than Windsor Castle. However, a final decision on the venue is still not taken yet.
The Queen and her engagements
The monarch flew to Aberdeen for her break in the Highlands on July 21 and moved into the castle after spending three weeks at Craigowan Lodge. Craigowan Lodge is a seven-bedroom house on the 50,000 – acre Balmoral estate. The Queen usually marks the beginning of her annual stay at Balmoral with a welcome ceremony and greeting well-wishers, however, this year the welcome ceremony was kept private and small owing to her mobility.
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