PM still a republican but ‘this is a time of respect’

King Charles III speaks with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at Buckingham Palace. Picture: Stefan Rousseau/Pool/AFP

Anthony Albanese said he had “a considerable engagement and discussion’’ with King Charles at Buckingham Palace, but the ­extraordinary outpouring of feeling for Queen Elizabeth and the monarchy in Britain had not changed his republican views.

The Prime Minister said he would not divulge what was discussed with the King during a private audience late on Saturday “because of protocol” but said he intended to have further talks with King Charles.

He described the atmosphere of the Buckingham Palace audience as “a warm gathering’’ but as a staunch republican, he said his views were very clear and instead insisted “this is a time of respect, that is what is required here’’.

In response to a question on whether the audience in the palace was awkward, given his views, Mr Albanese said: “I don’t find it difficult at all.”

He said his experiences and observations since the Queen’s death and Charles’s accession to the throne had not caused him to revise his views on a monarchy in Australia.

“No, it’s about respect to Queen Elizabeth and her extraordinary service over 70 years. The fact she continued to serve with extraordinary diligence and commitment and sense of duty is reflective of her generation as well; they gave so much in the post-war period.’’

The Prime Minister said it was a “great honour” to officially relay his and Australia’s condolences for the death of the Queen to King Charles.

Mr Albanese earlier paid his respects to the Queen as she lay in state at Westminster Hall, ­describing the experience as ­“momentous” and “emotional”.

“It was a very emotional ­experience … you could feel the raw emotion in Westminster Hall,” he said. “It was quite an extraordinary moment in history but also a very personal one.

“The Queen touched so many Australians for generations,” he said, citing her opening of the Opera House in Sydney, the new Parliament House in Canberra and her support during natural disasters.

Mr Albanese said an earlier meeting with British Prime Minister Liz Truss at Chevening House in Kent touched on economic issues and the AUKUS partnership but he did not disclose details.

More than two million people from across Britain are expected to make a pilgrimage to London for Monday’s funeral.

The streets near Buckingham Palace and Westminster are ­already seething with people, the hotels within the area booked out despite having sharply jacked up their prices. A 3km queue formed just for people to lay flowers in nearby Green Park on Saturday and police were preparing to close nearly all central London to traffic on Sunday to accommodate the influx.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Governor-general David Hurley pay their respects to the Queen at Westminster Hal. Picture: Supplied

More than 20,000 police have been mobilised, with thousands brought into London from around the country in what will be the largest security operation conducted in the capital.

“This will be on Monday the biggest single deployment of police officers in an operation that the Met police has ever undertaken,” Met police deputy ­assistant commissioner Stuart Cundy said. “As a single event, this is larger than the 20122 Olympics, it is larger than the platinum jubilee weekend.”

In central London, 36km of barriers will be erected to help control the crowds. The funeral will be the largest international event that London has hosted, with more than 500 dignitaries attending.

Ahead of the funeral, key royals mingled with crowds to thank them for their support during the mourning period.

King Charles and Prince William made a surprise appearance to talk with people in the long 14- hour queue that had formed along the Thames to pay their respects to the Queen.

An accessible queue that provided timed tickets to people with disabilities had been fully subscribed 36 hours before the end of the lying-in-state period early on Monday.

Outside Buckingham Palace, Prince Edward and his wife, ­Sophie, also mingled with mourners, thanking them for their wellwishes.