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Kate is ‘doing well’, says Prince William on visit to Cornwall

  • By Anna Lamche and Lucy Clarke-Billings
  • BBC news

video subtitling, Watch: Kate is doing well, Prince William says

Prince William said his wife Catherine is “doing well” following her cancer diagnosis.

He was told about a new health and social care facility being built on Ducat land next to the hospital.

The prince said his children George, Charlotte and Louis are “very jealous” of his trip and that he may bring them to Cornwall later in the year.

She was given a letter by matron Lynda McHale, written by her granddaughter, wishing the Princess of Wales and the King well in their recovery from cancer.

The trip marks William’s first official visit to the Isles of Scilly since becoming the Duke of Cornwall, a title he holds in addition to the title of Prince of Wales.

image caption, He spoke to some of the younger islanders

Prince William met staff at Hugh Town Hospital to learn about an expansion project for a new integrated health and social care unit.

He was told the facility would improve the range of care provided, while also ensuring people could be cared for as close to home as possible, rather than having to travel across the continent.

The new building is scheduled to open next summer.

Tracy Smith, an administrator at St Mary’s, hosted the prince’s tour of the medical centre.

Mrs Smith said: “I asked William about his wife Kate and he said: ‘She’s doing well, thank you’, and I suggested they might like to come and visit and bring the children.”

The Princess of Wales appealed for time, space and privacy for her family when she announced her diagnosis of an undisclosed form of cancer on March 22. She said she has started chemotherapy.

During his visit on Friday, William was given a card for his father the King – also suffering from cancer – and Catherine by matron Lynda McHale, who said it was from her niece “who wanted to wish her father and to his wife “get well soon”. .”

As heir to the throne, William is Duke of Cornwall and receives an income from the Duchy of Cornwall, a portfolio of land, property and investments that owns much of the Isles of Scilly and almost a third of residential buildings.

Friday’s visit saw him using a pickaxe to dig earth at the site of what will be the new facility.

The royal itinerary included a tour of St Mary’s Harbour, which is run by the duchy and handles everything from excursion boats to fishing and cargo ships.

There he met a boat team that came third in the Pilot World Championships held in Scilly last weekend.

image caption, Meeting locals at St Mary’s Harbour, the sea gateway to the Isles of Scilly
image caption, “They’re not all for me!”, the prince pointed out, when he bought five pastries
image caption, William used a spade to break ground on the site of what will be a new medical facility for St Mary’s Community Hospital

William visited the On The Quay cafe and ordered five cakes before pointing out: “They’re not all for me… but it smells delicious in here.”

“I was telling the others, I can’t believe the islands today, when you have weather like this – it’s just beautiful,” he said.

“I went into the sea yesterday, which was good. I wore a wetsuit.”

After leaving the cafe, William chatted with tourists waiting for boats to take them to different islands.

“I said to the team, ‘do we have to leave today? Can’t we stay a little longer?'” he told them.

When one woman replied that “you can do what you want”, she said: “I wish, my family is very upset, I am here without them, my children will kill me if I don’t come back.”

Prince William’s trip to Cornwall comes as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex begin a three-day visit to Nigeria.

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