Queen's Jubilee party licences show 'muted' response from public

Ahead of the Jubilee year, Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Communities, wrote to all local authorities in the UK encouraging leaders to promote public events.

A four-day UK bank holiday weekend from June 2 to 5 was announced to “provide opportunity for communities to come together in celebration".There are also plans to extend licensing hours across England and Wales.

However data shows most local Scottish councils have not had any requests from the public for permission to host street parties, in line with previous Royal occasions.

Prof Devine said the reaction north of the border was “par for the course” but suggested this may be more to do with a general malaise over the still ongoing pandemic, the war in Ukraine and cost-of-living crisis.

Of those councils that responded to The Herald the majority had not received any requests for licences to close streets including; South Ayrshire, Inverclyde, Falkirk, North Lanarkshire, Fife, Western Isles, Midlothian, Highland, Shetland and West Dunbartonshire.

Of those that have seen interest, Edinburgh City Council had the highest number at 13 and said they were “expecting more.”

A major Orange march is being held on Saturday, June 11 in Scotland's capital city to mark the Jubilee.

READ MORE: Orange march to be held in Edinburgh to mark Queen's Platinum Jubilee 

Aberdeenshire Council, which covers Royal Deeside, said it was progressing eight requests for jubilee-related events and added: “We are about to do some promotion around licensing deadlines to encourage those who have not approached the council yet to make sure they get their applications in in time.”

East Renfrewshire has had two requests while there were two in Lothian.

Renfrewshire Council said it could not provide the information without a freedom of information request.

Prof Devine said he wasn’t surprised that the Edinburgh public had shown the most interest in celebrating.

“It’s the capital but Edinburgh is not Scotland. It’s used to these ceremonial events,” he said.

“We would expect there to be activities in Braemar and the areas near Balmoral.

“If you look back at other celebrations that’s been the same pattern.

READ MORE: Will Scotland get the four-day Bank Holiday to mark Queen's Platinum Jubilee?

“I can recall at a tender age attending the street celebrations at the time of the Queen’s coronation in my home town of Motherwell and it was an absolutely tremendous occasion with tables right down the street and everyone in a festive mood.

“But the thing is that was a very special occasion because it was the beginning of a new monarch and also people were recovering from the war.

“By the 1950s the economy was rapidly growing, the welfare state had had an impact, there was a feel-good factor. 

“The situation today is quite different, we’ve just got through Covid, we are experiencing the first European war since 1945 and the cost of living is spiralling. 

“I don’t detect much of a mood for anything like the overt celebration that occurred in 1953, although it is a wonderful achievement that the monarch has reached this stage in her life.

“The other thing to bear in mind is that even a peerless Queen like Elizabeth II who has not put a foot wrong in her life is not as popular in Scotland as she is elsewhere in the UK.”

He said the latest polls showed 50% of people of voting age support the continuation of the monarchy while “ only 27%” would support a republic.

“I don’t think the monarchy is in dire threat,” he said.

“I don’t think the fact that there will be muted celebrations - especially in Scotland - gives us any clue to the future of the monarchy. It’s just the way we are and for the reasons we’ve just discussed, all this is not likely to create a mood of joy.”

He said a decline in neighbourliness and related rise in individualism was not conducive to “collective outdoor partying beyond families”.

“The people will enjoy the holiday but whether they will be out with bunting is more problematic.

“I’m an historian so the future is not my period and I could be completely wrong in my speculations," he added.

Buckingham Palace revealed in late February that the Queen had tested positive for Covid-19. Since then the 95-year-old has missed a number of public engagements including the annual Commonwealth Day service.

“This will be very much a personal celebration and a thank-you to a lifetime spent in service," said Prof Devine. 

"There is complete respect, even people of a republican tendency realise that the person of Elizabeth II is a decent person. 

He said it was also well recognised here that the Queen has a “deep fondness” for Scotland. 

Queensberry Event Hire, which provides marquee hire for events throughout Scotland, The Lake District and Northern England said it had received some requests for garden parties.

READ MORE: Glasgow schoolchildren dig in for Queen's Jubilee tree planting initiative 

A Scottish charity leader said he was also told by a luxury hotel that they could not source a marquee for his event due to high demand around the time of the Queen’s Jubilee.

Glasgow City Council could not provide information about requests for street parties within our time frame but numbers have historically been low for occasions such as Royal weddings.

However Thomas Kerr, Conservative Councillor for Shettleston seemed optimistic that the city would get behind the occasion.

He said: “Glasgow has a rich history of being at its best when big events are taking place and I’m sure the Platinum Jubilee will be no different.

“Her Majesty’s dedicated and devoted service to serving her country over the last seven decades is unrivalled and hugely inspirational.”