Keir Starmer's seating arrangement at King Charles's state banquet may raise eyebrows

King Charles’s Private Secretary, Sir Clive Alderton, was strategically seated next to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer during tonight’s State Banquet at Buckingham Palace. It was held in honour of the visiting Emperor and Empress of Japan.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was seated next to British computer scientist, Dame Wendy Hall. Sir Clive is the principal private secretary to the King and Queen, and the former diplomat is the couple’s most important aide.

According to polls, Mr Starmer has a strong likelihood of becoming the next prime minister, ahead of the General Election on July 4. They have consistently put the politician’s Labour Party well ahead of their Conservative rivals.

This week’s Japanese three-day state visit is the first time in living memory a foreign head of state has toured the UK as the nation prepared to go to the polls.

In 2017, a Spanish state visit by King Felipe VI was quickly rescheduled – after an agreement between the late Queen and King Felipe – because the date clashed with a snap election in the UK.

A Buckingham Palace spokesman said this week’s programme had been “slightly adapted”, adding: “As a general principle, it has of course been adapted as a result of the current pre-election period of sensitivity.”

Charles tonight praised the close bond between the UK and Japan in a speech during the lavish banquet, telling Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako their “shared values of freedom, democracy and the rule of law” were more important than ever.

He also spoke about his own personal connection with Japan and its head of state, telling the banquet guests how they both shared a passion for mountain climbing and had spent time together at the opera and fly fishing.

Among the royal guests at the banquet were the Prince of Wales and Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, but missing was the Princess Royal who spent a second night in hospital after suffering minor head injuries and concussion after she was reportedly kicked by a horse on her Gatcombe Park estate on Sunday.

The Princess of Wales, who is undergoing cancer treatment, was also absent from the glittering event.

The banquet menu featured poached Scottish langoustines, a baked fillet of Cornish turbot and an ice-cream bomb with peach sorbet.