The Queen will welcome the new Prime Minister at Balmoral instead of travelling down to London, a Buckingham Palace spokesperson has said.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson will meet the monarch at her Aberdeenshire home on Tuesday, September 6, where he will officially tender his resignation. Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss will then travel to Scotland on the same day for an audience with the Queen.
It is understood the decision was taken at this stage in order to provide certainty for the Prime Minister 's diary. If the Queen had experienced an episodic mobility issue next week and the plan had been to travel to London or Windsor, it would have led to alternative arrangements at the last minute.
Throughout her 70 years on the throne the Queen has appointed every new Prime Minister at Buckingham Palace, as is tradition. The new PM and Conservative Party leader will be announced on Monday, September 5.
Buckingham Palace has previously announced Her Majesty would interrupt her summer holiday to Scotland to greet the new Prime Minister after they move into Downing Street.
An official reason for the move has not yet been given but the Queen has been struggling in recent months with her mobility.
Every PM has been officially appointed in London at Buckingham Palace since the reign of Queen Victoria. Herbert Henry Asquith was the only exception in 1908 when he was appointed by Edward VII in Biarritz, France.
During her Platinum Jubilee celebrations, the Queen only travelled to Buckingham Palace twice, first for her Trooping the Colour balcony appearance and then for a finale after the pageant.
She spends most of her time at Windsor Castle, 22 miles from central London, living there during the pandemic and while major renovations take place at Buckingham Palace, and for her comfort.
As head of state, it is the Queen's duty to appoint the prime minister who leads Her Majesty's Government.
The Royal Encyclopedia states that the appointment of a prime minister is "one of the few remaining personal prerogatives of the sovereign".
The monarch does not act on advice nor need to consult anyone before calling upon the leader with an overall majority of seats in the House of Commons to form a government.
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