Prince William, Kate Middleton to focus on ‘diversity’ to show ‘other side’ of royal duties

Prince William and Kate Middleton are looking to opt for a different approach after they received backlash for their trip to the Caribbean last year.

Pauline Maclaran, a professor of Marketing & Consumer Research at Royal Holloway University, described Kate and William as “change-makers” who are taking a “much more humble approach” to royal duty, via Express.co.uk.

The Prince and Princess of Wales attended her first St Patrick’s Day Parade at Mons Barracks. On Friday, March 17th, 2023, Kate joined the Irish Guards in Aldershot for the first time as Colonel of the regiment.

The parade saw William officially pass on his title of Colonel of the Irish Guards to his wife, a move brought on by King Charles III’s reassigning a number of royal patronages late last year.

Maclaran told Express UK, “I think what we see with William and Kate is offering to serve and be much more humble in their approach. And, of course, they need that to get through this period of transition from the Queen to Charles — who is known to be quite a privileged individual.”

She continued, “The whole focus on diversity and woke issues are making the topic of white privilege really quite an uncomfortable one, so the royals have to deal with that as well. And we see Kate and William much more willing to show this other side of service and were taking commands from the public, rather than commanding the public. I think that’s how they dealt with the Caribbean trip that was deemed a bit of a PR disaster.”

She surmised that “William was very shocked at the mistakes made and the reactions; he then realised that he had to take more control of how things were managed.”

Maclaran further added, “Putting the emphasis on service: ‘We’re not going to try to be the head of any state that doesn’t want us, but tell us if we can be of service to you,’ is the approach I understand he took as the outcome of the tour.”