Queen to attend Remembrance Sunday service – as charity stresses importance of day being inclusive
The Queen will be attending the Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph in central London, leading the nation in commemorating those who lost their lives in conflicts.
It will be her Majesty’s first public outing after being advised to rest by doctors for almost a month, following medical checks in hospital.
The remembrance service will look very different to last year, when the event was forced to be scaled back due to the pandemic.
Nearly 10,000 veterans will participate in today’s service alongside hundreds of servicemen and women, with onlookers also present.
Nearly 10,000 veterans will participate in the service
Prime Minister Boris Johnson will be among other senior politicians and members of the Royal Family laying a wreath at the Cenotaph.
As has become custom in recent years, Prince Charles will be laying a wreath on behalf of the Queen.
A national two-minute silence will take place at 11am.
Mr Johnson said it’s a moment to “come together to remember those who sacrificed everything in service of our country”.
He added: “It’s a sacred ceremony that has endured for more than a century because we know the unpayable debt we owe those brave servicemen and women.
“We know that for our tomorrow they gave their today.
“And we know that here at home and around the world, thousands of men and women in uniform still stand ready to defend our unity and our way of life, our values, and at a cost few among us would be willing to pay.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Millions of people across the UK have stopped to remember those who have died in conflict
Buckingham Palace previously said it was the Queen’s “firm intention” to attend the annual service in Whitehall after she missed several other events, including the Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall on Saturday.
The Royal British Legion, the UK’s largest charity supporting those serving in the armed forces, also celebrates its centenary this year – it said this year’s march will include hundreds of young people from the cadets, guides and scouts.
British Future told Sky News about the importance of making remembrance inclusive for everybody.
The charity launched the Remember Together project, helping students investigate the untold stories of Black and Asian soldiers.
Students from a school in east London have spent the last few months looking into contributions made by those from ethnic minority backgrounds.
Wafa Afzali and Saeeda Amidu
Wafa Afzali told Sky News: “It’s really important for us to know about all the people who fought in World War Two, not just the white soldiers, the Black and Asian soldiers they also made a lot of sacrifices, for them to go unnoticed just doesn’t seem right.”
Saeeda Amidu said: “Remembrance should unite us all because many soldiers from all different ethnicities, religions, race, they all contributed to what Britain is now.”
Henry Braimah was a colonel stationed in Burma during World War One
As a result of the project, Saeeda discovered her own great-grandfather, Henry Braimah, was a colonel stationed in Burma during the Great War – a piece of family history that had never been discussed before.
Steve Ballinger, head of communications at British Future, said: “Commemorating our history can be difficult and divisive in Britain, but actually it can also bring people together.
‘Commemorating our history can be difficult’
“It is a difficult and complicated history but we need to engage with it because our history explains why Britain looks like it does today.”
Mr Ballinger added: “The armies that fought for Britain 75 years ago actually looked a lot like Britain does today in terms of its diversity.
“More than 2.5 million soldiers from India, Africa and the Caribbean served side by side in world war two, so they should all be commemorated equally today.”
Martin Lewis says motorists who were mis-sold car finance are likely to receive “hundreds, not thousands of pounds” – with regulators launching a consultation on a new compensation scheme.
The founder of MoneySavingExpert.com believes it is “very likely” that about 40% of Britons who entered personal contact purchase or hire purchase agreements between 2007 and 2021 will be eligible for payouts.
“Discretionary commission arrangements” saw brokers and dealers charge higher levels of interest so they could receive more commission, without telling consumers.
Pics: PA
Speaking to Sky News Radio’s Faye Rowlands, Lewis said: “Very rarely will it be thousands of pounds unless you have more than one car finance deal.
“So up to about a maximum of £950 per car finance deal where you are due compensation.”
Lewis explained that consumers who believe they may have been affected should check whether they had a discretionary commission arrangement by writing to their car finance company.
However, the personal finance guru warned against using a claims firm.
“They’re hardly going to do anything for you and you might get the money paid to you automatically anyway, in which case you’re giving them 30% for nothing,” he added.
Read more: How to tell if you’ve been mis-sold car finance
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Who’s eligible for payout after car finance scandal?
Yesterday, the Financial Conduct Authority said its review of the past use of motor finance “has shown that many firms were not complying with the law or our disclosure rules that were in force when they sold loans to consumers”.
The FCA’s statement added that those affected “should be appropriately compensated in an orderly, consistent and efficient way”.
Lewis told Sky News that the consultation will launch in October – and will take six weeks.
“We expect payouts to come in 2026, assuming this will happen and it’s very likely to happen,” he said.
“As for exactly how will work, it hasn’t decided yet. Firms will have to contact people, although there is an issue about them having destroyed some of the data for older claims.”
He believes claims will either be paid automatically – or affected consumers will need to opt in and apply to get compensation back.
Read more from Sky News:
Hamas ‘ready’ to deliver aid to hostages
Oasis ‘saddened’ after man dies at concert
The FCA estimates the cost of any scheme – including compensation and administrative costs – to be no lower than £9bn.
But in a video on X, Lewis said that millions of people are likely to be due a share of up to £18bn.
The regulator’s announcement comes after the Supreme Court ruled on a separate, but similar, case on Friday.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike