A majority of the British public believes that it is now time for Prince Philip to retire from carrying out royal duties, a new YouGov poll reveals
The poll was conducted while the Duke of Edinburgh was in hospital, recovering from an exploratory operation on his abdomen. It finds that over half (54%) of people think that Philip should retire, while a third (32%) say he should continue to carry out royal duties and the rest are undecided.
The Prince was admitted to hospital on June 6 and was released yesterday. A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said the 92-year-old was “in good condition” but would take a convalescence period of approximately two months to recover before resuming royal duties.
Public finds Philip “refreshingly non-politically correct”
Meanwhile, most Britons find Prince Philip’s comments, which over the years some have found offensive and inappropriate, to be refreshing. Asked which statement best reflects their view, and more than six in 10 (62%) agree that his comments are “often amusing and refreshingly non-politically correct”. In comparison, just 22% say that the Prince’s comments are “often embarrassing or even offensive.”
Asked whether they have a positive or negative view of the Duke of Edinburgh, and 69% of respondents said say have either a very positive (28%) or fairly positive (40%) opinion of him.