Embarrassing gaffes in the palace

Storm in a teacup. The Chinesei will get over it. They were rude. And Nigeria and Afghanistan have been corrupt. Good on the Archbishop though, speaking up for President Buhari.

Cameron did look a bit of a dickhead though. Silly wording, "most fantastically corrupt countries".

Yes, and he did sound rather over-familiar, as though he and HM have frequent cosy chats slagging off other countries and regimes...(although perhaps they do, and that was why she looked so horrified!)

I thought the police commander sounded as though she was warming up for a good old gossip with her favourite aunty.

Police commander was getting nudged to open up the topic by a palace official. Palace plot against George #BestfriendwithChina Osborne?

It was odd the way the official prompted the police officer .

Cameron was a strutting peacock, so what about all this money invested by the corrupt of Nigeria in this country

I don't think it reflects very well on David Cameron's character or judgment to make sneering remarks about two countries whose leaders are attending an anti-corruption conference which DC himself set up. The leaders in question have themselves acknowledged that their countries have major issues regarding corruption and it was unnecessary and very discourteous to rub their noses in it.

It is hardly a good tactic to embarrass and humiliate anyone in such a way, let alone people with whom you wish to have amicable and productive talks.

I wonder if DC would have had the nerve to make such remarks in relation to other more powerful countries. There are very few (if any) countries in the world that have an unblemished record regarding corruption but some have more sophisticated ways of masking it.

And I thought it was totally inappropriate for the police commander to discuss the behaviour of a previous Chinese delegation, however justified her complaint might have been.

Corruption talks start tomorrow. That should be interesting.
This is what the British think is corruption.

theconversation.com/british-people-on-corruption-in-their-own-country-its-far-from-squeaky-clean-59139

I thought it was very funny when the Police Commanders Mum said to the Queen
'I'm so proud of my daughter'.

I surprised myself by feeling a tad outraged that private conversations were somehow eavesdropped on and then shown on every media outlet. I must be an innocent abroad because if I have a private conversation with someone, in the course of my work particularly, then it stays private. I enjoy a good chat (ok gossip) with the best of them but what's it coming to when Her Maj can't relax in her own front garden and be honest, just occasionally, about what she really thinks.

What have I missed?

Well said, Iam64.

Totally agree that DC came over as a very silly boy and rather too familiar in tone when speaking to the Queen. He was lucky the Archbishop rescued him from further gaffes.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/may/11/uk-target-tax-secrecy-overseas-territories-michel-sapin-jersey-virgin-islands

France likely to say this in corruption talks tomorrow.
I think Cameron said what he did to deflect from the tax corruption. It hasn't worked.

I think Bumptious is the word that comes to mind when I listen to David Cameron.

What fun to see the Queen saying what she thinks for once.

Is that the best Eton can produce? Can with have a PM with some dignity and common sense please?
I've never been a Bercow fan but loved his telling off of phone fiddler Hunt!

I can't help thinking that this has been made headline news to deflect our gaze from something more serious.
Surely this kind of private conversation goes on all the time!

Of course private conversations between the Queen/other public officials go on all the time. That's the point, they are private and should remain private. I don't think it's a conspiracy to deflect our gaze from something more serious. It was the chap with the camera and mic, an opportunity to make a small fortune, which he took. All the newspapers and media outlets aren't in on a conspiracy, they're making money selling the story on -

Cameron was showing off -he knew very well the cameras were there, off course he did.

Her Maj also making a remark defending her ambassador said it in public. She is a wise enough old lady to be fully aware of what she was doing. Unless she is losing her marbles -and there is no evidence of that.

It was the disgraceful lack of integrity that annoyed me.about these stories.

Don't TV crews have a code of conduct or is anything fair game. I don't think I have ever seen a garden party interview or a chat at a dinner do on the news before. Someone with a political agenda ,in my mind, was involved. It's obviously "open season".

I agree with Iam64,but very very suspicious ,why would they allow this to become public.As you say, they have private conversations all the time,without cameras.Or have I got it wrong again.
As for corruption,if people really new all,all hell would break out,surely.

Neither of these were private occasions and the palace released the footage, if I understand correctly. The PM has an opportunity to make private remarks to the Queen on a very regular basis in their 1:1s. He came across to me as socially ill at ease so maybe he does not feel that comfortable with the Queen despite meeting her so many times...

Exactly who was making this recording? Why have they been allowed to broadcast this? Have we now reached the point where nobody can say anything at all off the cuff without a microphone hovering? And why is so much being made of a comment that is completely true, and also admitted by the leaders of the countries concerned? The BBC were babbling on about it again this morning on Radio 4 so I switched off - let's drop this pointless scab picking and hear about something that matters to us all.

I am really fed up with the way some people are only too keen to pass on titbits of info. Particularly I get cross with the media relishing every piece of gossip. I think the News programmes should stick to news not all these "storms in a teacup"! Likewise the newspapers.

Am I the only person to think it fishy that semi private remarks by both the Queen and the Prime Minister were broadcast publicly to huge media opprobrium at the same time? As far as I can work out from reading online comments everyone knows that Nigeria and Kenya are corrupt and that the Chinese are isolationist and arrogant, and, moreover, most people don't care overmuch if anyone says it.

"Milching malicho", as Hamlet says.