Merkel to meet Johnson, queen on a final visit to Britain

Chancellor Angela Merkel travels to Britain on Friday on what is likely to be her last visit to the country before she leaves office.

She is scheduled to have a meeting with Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Queen Elizabeth II.

Merkel travels first to Chequers, the British prime minister’s country retreat, for a midday meeting with Johnson. German-British relations after Brexit and containing the Coronavirus pandemic are likely to be high on the agenda.

Merkel and other German leaders had expressed concern at the number of spectators being allowed to watch European Football Cup matches at Wembley Stadium.

The German authorities had been alarmed at the rapid spread of the Delta variant of the virus in Britain.

A meeting with Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle outside London has been scheduled for late afternoon.

Merkel and Johnson met at the G7 summit held in Cornwall between June 11, and June 13, where they held a bilateral meeting.

The chancellor will leave office following the September elections in Germany.