Keir Starmer praises Charles after royal was harassed in Australia | King Charles III

King Charles is doing a “fantastic job”, particularly in relation to his “health challenges”, the prime minister said after the king was harassed by Indigenous Australian senator Lidia Thorpe.

Charles had just finished speaking to MPs and senators at Parliament House in Canberra as part of his five-day tour of Australia with Camilla when Thorpe accosted him and shouted: “This is not your country.”

Following the launch of the public consultation on the future of the NHS on Monday, Keir Starmer was asked whether it was “disgraceful” that Australian politicians were “harassing the king”.

Starmer said: “Look, I think the King is doing a fantastic job, he's an incredible ambassador not just for our country but for the whole Commonwealth.”

“I think he's doing a fantastic job and we should remember in the context of health that he's out there doing his public service, regardless of the health issues that he himself has had – so I think he's doing a great job. “”

Charles paused his cancer treatment after his diagnosis in February while he makes his first trip as monarch to Australia and his state visit to Samoa.

Starmer also praised the monarch as an “incredible ambassador” for the Commonwealth and said he looked forward to attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit (Chogm) with Charles in Samoa.

Thorpe had shouted at Charles: “You have committed genocide against our people. Give us back our country. Give us what you stole from us – our bones, our skulls, our babies, our people.

“You destroyed our country. Give us a contract. We want a treaty in this country. You are a 'genocider'.”

As Thorpe was led out of the room, she added: “Give us a treaty – we want a treaty with this country… This is not your country, this is not your country, you are not my king, you are not our king .” ”

Thorpe later said in a statement: “The British Crown has committed heinous crimes against the First Peoples of this country.”

“These crimes include war crimes, crimes against humanity and failure to prevent genocide. There was no justice for these crimes. The Crown must be held accountable.”

Asked whether Britain was guilty of genocide in Australia, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said he would not engage in comments related to royal matters. But he said Britain's relationship with Australia was “fantastic” and the country was an important ally.

But No 10 said Starmer remained opposed to apologizing for Britain's historic role in slavery, with the spokesman noting that talks about reparations were “not on the agenda” of the Chogm meeting.

“The position on apology remains the same,” they said. “We will not apologize at Chogm, but we will continue to engage with partners on these issues as we work with them to address the pressing challenges of today and for future generations.”