Emmanuel Macron deliberately missed the coach to Buckingham Palace reception trends now

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Emmanuel Macron caused a diplomatic headache at the Queen’s funeral by ‘deliberately missing’ the coach to a reception at Buckingham Palace – so he could arrive in a diplomatic limo instead, Whitehall sources have revealed.

The sources claim the French President engineered the move by taking a prolonged walk with his wife which, because it played havoc with strict timings, forced the Government to lay on a limousine for him.

Sources told The Mail on Sunday that Mr Macron was perceived to be trying to obtain a similar exemption as US President Joe Biden, who was allowed to attend both the reception and the funeral in his official armoured car known as ‘The Beast’.

It is said to have caused such irritation among protocol officials in charge of the funeral logistics that the French government was warned that Mr Macron would not be able to claim the same privilege the following morning for the funeral itself.