Taxpayers are likely to foot the bill for Ben Roberts-Smith to travel to the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II after the former Australian soldier confirmed he had accepted an invitation to attend.
Buckingham Palace has invited Roberts-Smith to attend the funeral and to take part in events commemorating the life of the sovereign in recognition of his status as a recipient of the Victoria Cross, along with the three other recipients of Australia’s pre-eminent military honour, Keith Payne, Mark Donaldson and Daniel Keighran.
Roberts-Smith will not fly with the prime minister’s official delegation on the RAAF’s VIP jet, but will instead take a commercial flight to London. However, a spokesperson for the Department of Defence confirmed that taxpayers would cover the cost of the flights “upon request” of those invited.
Roberts-Smith told the West Australian newspaper, which is owned by the Kerry Stokes-chaired Seven West Media group, it was “a great honour to be able to be there for this sad occasion”.
“I have a very deep respect for Her Majesty and everything that she has sacrificed in her life and what she has achieved,” he said. “She has been a magnificent monarch, she has been a stoic leader, and importantly she was also a lovely lady.”
Stokes has been covering the legal costs for Roberts-Smith’s defamation case.
The defence department confirmed the Victoria Cross and George Cross Association had invited all holders of the Victoria Cross to attend the Queen’s funeral as well as her lying in state, “in accordance with the wishes of Her Majesty”.
Roberts-Smith, a former corporal in the SAS, is awaiting a judgment in a defamation case he brought against three Australian newspapers. He is suing the Age, the Sydney Morning Herald and the Canberra Times for defamation over reports he alleges wrongly portray him as a war criminal and murderer.
The newspapers are defending their reporting as true, including allegations Roberts-Smith was complicit in six murders while deployed to Afghanistan, was a bully, and a perpetrator of domestic violence. Roberts-Smith denies any wrongdoing.
The Australian Federal Police have conducted war crimes investigations into allegations against Roberts-Smith, and have submitted briefs of evidence to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions. No charges have been laid.
Roberts-Smith was awarded his VC for his actions during the 2010 battle of Tizak in southern Afghanistan. He was invested with his medal by the then governor general, Quentin Bryce, in 2011, but was also invited to an audience with the late Queen.
Donaldson, who received his VC in 2009 in Afghanistan, will represent Australian recipients of the Victoria Cross and George Cross in the Orders of Chivalry Procession and see Her Majesty lying in state.
