Prince and Princess of Wales meet families of Southport victims

The Emir of Qatar is to pay a state visit to the UK hosted by the King, Buckingham Palace has announced.

Charles and the Queen will welcome Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and the first of his three wives, Sheikha Jawaher bint Hamad bin Suhaim Al Thani, to London on December 3.

They can expect to be feted with a traditional ceremonial welcome on Horse Guards Parade and a grand state banquet at Buckingham Palace during the two-day incoming state visit.

Charles has visited Qatar eight times as the Prince of Wales and met the Emir at the Cop28 summit in Dubai in December. The Qatari leader and Sheikha Jawaher also attended the King’s coronation in Westminster Abbey, and the late Queen’s funeral.

The Qatari royal family is one of the richest in the world, with a reported fortune running into the billions.

Sheikh Tamim, 44, was educated in Britain, attending public schools Sherborne and Harrow, before graduating from the Sandhurst military academy. He set up Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) in 2005, which owns the French football team Paris Saint-Germain.

Qatar – one of the richest Gulf states – is a key mediator in the Israel-Hamas war and the ruling Emir is likely to meet Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer for talks at Downing Street during his stay.

The King will join Sir Keir Starmer in meeting business leaders from across the world at a reception linked to the Labour Government’s first major investment summit.

Buckingham Palace confirmed Charles’ attendance at the event, which will take place on Monday evening at St Paul’s Cathedral following the summit.

Alongside the Prime Minister, he will meet guests from sectors including technology, energy and the performing arts.

The reception will be held after around 300 industry leaders gather in London for the Government’s flagship investment summit, at which Sir Keir will pitch the UK as “open for business” as part of his bid to drive growth into the country.

It is not the first time Charles has attended such an event, having hosted former premier Rishi Sunak at a similar reception at Buckingham Palace last year to conclude 2023’s UK Global Investment Summit.

Can the royal family and King Charles adapt to the modern age and stay relevant? Will Harry be able to rejoin The Firm? And what will the next generation of royalty be like?

Hosted by assistant editor Victoria Harper, the panel features bestselling authors Anna Pasternak and Tessa Dunlop, plus royal historian Jonathan Spangler.

Speaking on ITV’s This Morning, she said: “I love when the King went to the Cancer Research UK [in April] and actually sat on the sofa.

“And of course, it’s coming from a place of empathy, because he does understand, and… yesterday, the first time when I was sitting there with someone, it’s not just ‘I understand’ – patronising. It’s ‘I know’.”

Sarah, 64, yesterday visited a cancer treatment centre in Manchester, having also recently battled the disease.

In a post shared to Twitter/X, they congratulated walkers for their extraordinary achievement of walking 450 miles, through 11 countries over a six-week period in aid of an anti-homelessness charity.

It read: “Congratulations to Chloe, Jagger, Peter, Cecile and Lorie on your extraordinary achievement! The walkers have been raising money for homelessness charity Emmaus, of which The Queen is Patron.”

A link was then shared for anyone who wishes to donate to the cause. It can be found here.

They did so by sharing a video from Kate’s Early Years project, which sees members of its Business Taskforce discuss the subject.

“It is vital that we look after the mental health and well-being of parents and carers because this has a significant impact on the children that they are raising,” a contributor said.

You can watch the video below:

The Prince and Princess of Wales’s visit to Southport today has been described as a “massive boost” to those affected by July’s atrocity.

Former chief constable Andy Rhodes, who is involved in The Royal Foundation’s Blue Light Together programme, said: “To have somebody clearly as passionate and genuine about supporting them and their mental health to come and speak to them is a massive boost.”

He also said the future king and queen “genuinely listened” to the people they spoke to.

He added: “It was quite emotional. It is still raw for people.”

The heir to the throne, 42, described them as “true professionals” and said they had endured a “bumpy few months”.

He said: “The first thing we thought about was actually how on earth you guys are going to handle having seen what you’ve seen.

“So please take your time, don’t rush back to work, do whatever you need to, talk about it, give your superiors a hard time if they are not letting you have that time to decompress because it’s so important you have those moments.”

Phil Garrigan said he had a “really lovely fleeting conversation” with both Kate and William.

He added: “The Princess of Wales broke off and came back into the building to give a hug to the people who responded because she could see the emotion in them and could see it was difficult for them to relay their feelings and to say how impactful events have been.

“I think that just shows a really caring side and is very, very touching for them.”

It is believed that the visit was planned as a solo engagement for William, but Kate, who has recently finished chemotherapy, wanted to attend to show her support as well.