The Queen has let it be known through her Private Secretary, Sir Robin Janvrin, that she will not be cutting back her duties, at least in 2007.

Now 80, it had been widely suggested that HM would reduce her workload by passing more onto Prince Charles, some eventually to Prince William, and spend more time at Windsor.

However, at a staff Christmas drinks party at Buckingham Palace, which the Queen attentded for a while, Sir Robin announced : “The Queen, during 2007, will not reduce her schedule any further. The Queen will not stop her foreign state visits and journeys, and the Queen will not move to Windsor.”

This was greeted by loud cheers from the staff, according to reports. Richard Kay in the Daily Mail writes : “Sir Robin’s emphatic remarks put paid to the fevered speculation … that the sprightly Queen would be reducing her workload …”

In fact, it does no such thing. Janvrin said emphatically that she will not be reducing her schedule “any further”. In other words, she has already made big cuts in her activities. Also, the statement is emphatically timestamped. The artful speech states “during 2007″, leaving open 2008 and years thereafter.

Who says the Palace has no statecraft?