Labour leadership candidate Clive Lewis has called for a referendum on abolishing the monarchy.
The Norwich South MP Clive Lewis said the public should be allowed to vote on “what the future of the monarchy is” and claimed there was widespread support for the Royal Family being “scaled down”.
Mr Lewis was one of the first candidates to enter the race to succeed Jeremy Corbyn, although he is struggling to reach the 22 MP nominations require to progress in the contest.
Answering questions following a speech in south London, Mr Lewis said: “I think a lot of people would like to see the monarchy scaled down – there’s been a lot of talks… that the monarchy is quite large and there are a lot of people being paid by the public purse.
“But one of the things I always talk about is democracy. I know that liking the odd referendum…so why not have a referendum in this country on the future of the Royal Family?”
The suggestion comes after a torrid few weeks for the the Royal Family, during which Prince Andrew was forced to step back from public duties over his relationship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced caused shockwaves by announcing that they were abandoning most of their royal duties.
Read more via The Independent
