The Monarch has no power to force an opinion but that is not the point. Having a safe and secret place for a PM to discuss difficult situations with somebody who has probably seen most of them before is immensely powerful.

I know some believe that all government should be open/public but I suspect in many cases that means that real discussions don't take place out of fear of offence or backlash from the public. If you were toying with the idea of e.g. privatising the NHS or selling off a load of gold for raising funds, you might want to discuss these privately before they end up as a Headline.

> Having a safe and secret place for a PM to discuss difficult situations with somebody who has probably seen most of them before is immensely powerful.

If the monarch is competent. History shows that it happens, but is far from being the norm. Blood lines do not guarantee anything in that respect.

They get to tell them so. I don’t think a holder of sovereignty has to have active power. Weee human beings. Symbolic power matters. If it’s ever not enough, we’ll find another way.

Perhaps I'm either too cynical or too naive, but I can't imagine someone like Boris Johnson being even slightly fazed by it. Having to stand in a room once a week for a couple of hours being disapproved at is nothing to someone that's been through the public school system and modern politics.