The Queen’s strong sense of duty has always led her to follow change, not precede it The monarchy is a symbol of stability in a changing world. This may have been an exasperating brake in the past, but nowadays, the monarchy is clearly in no position to impede necessary change, even if it wanted to. Yet it still remains a last line of defence against dangerous extremism and corruption, something that a presidential system cannot offer.Marlene Bishop Shop ownerI can remember the Coronation, and I have always thought that the whole thing was a waste of money. I used to have a friend who was a maid at Buckingham Palace, and the stories she used to tell me made me mad. When I lived in Lanarkshire in the late 1950s and early 1960s, my three kids were starving, and yet she used to tell me about the amount of food that would be thrown out after a meal there It made me sick. Where’s the justice in that? I honestly don’t think that many people are bothered about the Royals anymore.

Perhaps it’s time to get rid of them.Val Boston-Davies Knutsford haberdasherThe jubilee has brought a late flurry of trade. The demand for Union flags and patriotic tablecloths, plastic hats, whistles and bunting have sent me haring up to Bury, Greater Manchester, for supplies to fill my shop There’s definitely something in the air. I’m also helping to organise a jubilee picnic for townspeople. I don’t remember the Queen ever visiting here, but we did have a visit from the late Princess Margaret, and there’s a lot of affection for the Royal Family.Rosie Boycott JournalistI’m a republican at heart, but it’s very unlikely that we’ll abolish them overnight. I would encourage a fantastically curtailed monarchy, based on the Danish model, which would only include the Queen and her close family – the others would all be cut loose. It would be nice to have Royals with a sense of history, yes, but who don’t constantly flaunt their wealth and royal privilege. The way that they stuff their privileges down ordinary people’s faces is intolerably arrogant.

The fact that they have at least £6.9bn worth of art stowed away and won’t let the general public see it – it’s obscene! I don’t particularly have anything against the Queen herself, but while the other members of the Royal Family aren’t without their qualities as individuals, they really don’t have very much to do with the people.Billy Bragg SingerHer job should have gone the way of so many other people’s jobs in the last century. The coal miners were got rid of because they were told they were no longer viable. Is the Queen viable? It’s difficult to have a debate about the subject while the Queen’s still with us, because she has an aura of permanence about her But you can’t disband the monarchy. It would take a horrible national catastrophe to do that – and I wouldn’t wish that on us.