Source: WION NEWS
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is one of the most prominent faces on the planet. She is the Queen of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth realms. However, despite having a democratic set up in the UK where every person ought to be equal in the eyes of law, Queen Elizabeth II enjoys certain privileges.
According to a Guardian report, since 1967, over 160 laws have been re-written to provide exemptions to the royal highness. While some of the exemptions may be innocuous, few raise eyebrows as they do not fit in with the modern standards of progress and inclusivity.
Reportedly, the Queen and her royal family have immunity from anti-discrimination laws. Meaning that any employee on the payroll of the Queen is not allowed to pursue racist and sexual discrimination complaints. It has been suggested that there is a separate in-house mechanism to hear such complaints but it’s unclear what due process is followed in it.
Moreover, the Queen has immunity from being charged under any civil or criminal suit. Being the head of the state, the Queen has sovereign immunity. However, the same cannot be said about other Royal family members. Prince Andrew, the Duke of York has been at the centre of controversy for his relationship with paedophile sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
While Queen Elizabeth II is her public persona who owns the historic Buckingham Palace and other royal property, Elizabeth Windsor is her private legal persona.
The former cannot sell the royal properties but the latter can indulge in trading i.e buying or selling of assets, like any other private citizen. However, even then, few antiquated laws have been circumvented to protect the legal and economic rights of Elizabeth Windsor.
The Queen might be chauffeured everywhere she goes but in the odd case she needs to drive a personal vehicle, she isn’t required to carry a driver’s license.
While Queen may not drive private vehicles a lot, she does indeed travel across the globe for her various official commitments. However, even then, she is not required to carry a British passport.
According to a statement on the Royal Family website, the British passport is issued in the name of Her Majesty, thus, she doesn’t have to possess one. Moreover, the British monarchy is exempted from sharing any explanation for anything, if the public demands under the Freedom of Information Act.