Buildings, parks, pubs or businesses cannot be renamed after the late Queen Elizabeth II without permission and will be allowed only if they are “dignified and appropriate”, the Cabinet Office has said.
The name of the late queen is going to be “closely protected” in terms of how it can be used and permission will be “sparingly granted”, according to guidance on the use of modern royal names and titles.
The guidance, published on 4 July, stated: “Permission to use the title ‘royal’, or the names and titles of members of the royal family, including the name of the late queen, and other protected royal titles is a mark of favour granted by the sovereign, acting on the advice of his ministers.”
An “official national memorial” to the late queen is expected “in due course”, the Cabinet Office added.
There are many places and businesses with historic royal names, for example the Queen Vic pub in the BBC’s EastEnders soap opera, and the Royal Albert Hall concert venue in London.
The Cabinet Office acknowledged that many local organisations or community groups might want their own memorial to Elizabeth, such as naming a park, or local amenity, or business or street after her.
But the government guidance warned that the use of “Queen Elizabeth II” will “only be granted for applications with strong royal connections”, and that “strict standards are applied”. Due to the royal prerogative, “information about any criteria which may exist and the reasons for the grant or refusal of an application are not disclosed”, the guidance added.
However, it said that requests that incorporate “memorial” or “remembrance” in a proposed name are “likely to be looked upon favourably”.
The guidance noted that individuals can still create and erect or display their own unofficial statue or portrait, so long as there is no commercial element to the project. For large-scale, public-facing projects, organisations should write to the private secretary’s office at Buckingham Palace as a courtesy, the guidance added.
Inquiries in England and Northern Ireland are managed by the Cabinet Office, and by the governments in Scotland and Wales.
