A new 'Cambridge way' for future tours as William and Kate respond after Caribbean trip

There will be a new “Cambridge way” for Prince William and Kate’s future royal tours as the future King plans to ditch the decades-old ‘never complain, never explain’ mantra favoured by the Queen.The plans will be worked out in the coming months as royal aides consider how best to reflect on, and respond to, the reaction to last week’s Caribbean tour.Despite being received warmly and enthusiastically by those they met during the three-country trip, the optics of the tour sat uncomfortably with many, as the world reassess relationships and historical ties following the Black Lives Matter movement and the pandemic.It’s a glimpse into what the British Monarchy might look like under a King William - when he succeeds to the throne after his father.

ITV News Royal Producer Lizzie Robinson analyses the 'unprecedented' end of tour statement

The Queen has always preferred a policy of maintaining a dignified silence no matter what the criticism or press coverage, to avoid a political-style strategy of responding to daily developments.That ‘never explain, never complain’ mantra has served her well but William’s aides believe it might belong in the past as the world moves on and looks anew at historical ties.How colonial powers behaved in places like the Caribbean and how that impacts on relations today, is something that needs to be addressed - and Prince William hinted, in a highly unusual end of tour statement, that he wants to “learn” from last week.Isolated images - such as William and Kate shaking hands through a wire fence and the couple standing in the back of a Land Rover at a military parade - prompted a storm of reaction on social media.On the ground - the reality was very different.The fence - a perimeter fence around a football pitch - had crowds at it wanting to catch a glimpse of William and Kate, and footballer Raheem Sterling (who also shook hands through the fence).

It was a instinctive response to say hello to the crowds and in any event was followed by a walkabout in the street moments later.And the Land Rover moment, a recreation of something the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh had done many times before - was a “number one ask” of the couple from Jamaican Defence Force, according to royal sources.But campaigners in Jamaica, eager for a republic and an apology for the ills of Britain’s past, said it looked like something from the British Empire in the 1800s.Royal staff insist many of the events, and receptions, are arranged at the request of the host countries and of the British government - giving the Duke and Duchess fewer opportunities to make the tour reflect their own passions and causes.

And part of the problem on this tour was that it was held to commemorate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and consequently it spent more time looking back than looking forward.William and Kate will sit down with their staff in the coming weeks and work out how future tours might be arranged differently in what one aide called a “Cambridge way”.Prince William spoke about how he and Kate are here to “serve the people of the Commonwealth” in his reflective statement.It feels like this was a watershed moment for royal tours - at least in the Cambridge household - and the next one they do will look very different indeed.

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