Prince Charles’s trip to Cuba is a big mistake

More than 120 years ago, Winston Churchill sailed to Cuba. While there, he dreamt of a country ‘free and prosperous…throwing open her ports to the commerce of the world, sending her ponies to Hurlingham and her cricketers to Lords.’ Now, in spite of Cuba’s communist revolution, the British government seems to have the same optimistic view as Churchill. But is it right to do so?

On Sunday, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall landed in Havana. Their tour is the first official royal appointment in Cuba, a four-day trip the British government hopes will strengthen economic and diplomatic relations with the communist country. The royal trip may be historic, but no matter how you spin it, commercially, it is a complete waste of time. British GDP is 3,000 times larger than Cuba’s and our economies are almost incomparable. The UK has a modern, services-based economy; Cuba relies on exporting doctors to its allies, importing bargain-price oil from Venezuela, remittances from families abroad and international tourism.