Books of condolence open and flags at half-mast in South West

Books of condolence have opened at a number of public buildings across the South West for people to pay their respects to the Queen.

Locations include Exeter Cathedral, Truro Cathedral, St Andrew's Church in Plymouth and a number of council buildings and libraries.

People have also been laying flowers at venues, and flags are at half mast.

The chairman of Devon County Council, Ian Hall, was the first to sign a book of condolence at County Hall in Exeter.

In it he wrote: "On behalf of Devon County Council and the people of Devon, I offer my sincere condolences to the Royal Family on the death of Her Majesty The Queen Elizabeth.

"The loss of our sovereign will be felt across our county, the country and the globe.

"We thank you Ma'am for your selfless and unparalleled dedication to duty, which will serve to inspire us all."

Leader of Exeter City Council Phil Bialyk said: "For the majority of people in Exeter they will only have ever known a time when the queen was on the throne; to lose our longest reigning monarch is very sad."

Leader of Cornwall Council, Linda Taylor said the Queen was "a global colossus by reputation, a bright beacon among heads of state internationally, offering a lifetime of service to her grateful nation".

Information on the opening times and locations of books of condolence are available on individual council websites, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

Flags on council buildings will be raised from the current half-mast to full mast from 11:00 BST to coincide with the reading of the principal proclamation, when the name of the new sovereign will be announced.

At 16:00 on Sunday they will be lowered again to half-mast and will remain so until 08:00 on the day following The Queen's state funeral.

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