LONDON (CU)_Over the past few months, Queen Elizabeth has been forced to cancel several public appearances, including the Commonwealth Service and the Easter Sunday service, owing to concerns over her discomfort in travelling. This week Her Majesty will miss a major constitutional ceremony, from which she pulled out at the eleventh hour.

The Buckingham Palace on Monday evening announced that the 96-year-old monarch will not attend this year’s State Opening of Parliament on account of her mobility issues. The Queen, in consultation with her doctors, had reluctantly decided to pulled out of the ceremony in Westminster, because of “episodic mobility problems”, the Palace said in a statement. This will be the first time since 1963 that Her Majesty will have missed the constitutional ceremony, during which the government sets out its legislative plans. Her eldest son and the heir apparent to the British throne, Prince Charles, will deliver the address to Parliament at 11:30 BST on Tuesday, on her behalf.

Despite the Queen’s absence, the Imperial State Crown will still be brought to Parliament, while the Queen’s throne will remain empty. Prince Charles, his wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, and his eldest son Prince William will be seated in front of the assembled parliamentarians.

The Queen’s Speech will open with a promise to strengthen the economy, ease the financial burden on households and proceed with the government’s levelling up programme which is aimed at addressing regional disparities in the UK. 38 bills, including laws aimed at boosting economic growth and easing the cost of living will also be announced in the speech. This will be followed by a House of Commons debate, in which Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to argue that Whitehall cannot simply “spend our way out of the country’s problems”, pointing out that the answer lies instead in creating high skilled, high waged jobs.