Foreign media: The British "Royal Cat" has been in office for ten years

As a loyal supporter of British politics, the official cat "Larry" has been sitting in Downing Street for 10 years, after 3 prime ministers, and became a legend in its afternoon dozing, according to Agence France-Presse London on February 13.

"Larry" came to 10 Downing Street on February 15, 2011, when he was 4 years old. According to a description on the UK government website, "Larry" comes from the "Battersea Cat and Dog House" in London animal shelter. It was selected for its rat-catching technique and earned the title of "Chief Mousetrap Officer". David Cameron, the first prime minister of the "Larry" service, said that although "Larry" caught 3 rats at the beginning of his tenure, it has performed disappointingly since then – the work often stops at the "tactical planning stage".

Downing Street said Larry's soft-power diplomacy "captured the hearts and minds of the British public". This includes Larry building rapport with journalists, photographers and camera crews stationed outside the Prime Minister's Office. These people will reward it with a caress and a snack.

When Cameron left Downing Street in 2016, "Larry" stayed firmly. It once lived under the same roof as May and now with Boris Johnson.

Historian Anthony Selden told AFP that in an animal-loving country, downing street cats played an important role in public relations. "Cats help embody the prime minister's human side," Selden said, and cats can also be "distracted" in times of crisis.

Tim Bell, a professor of political science at Queen Mary University of London, believes that Larry's evergreen status stems from the prime minister's desire to address the issue of "politicians seriously out of the electorate". Bell said the prime minister — especially the one who has already polarized the population — would seize every opportunity to make people feel they had something in common." He said: "A lot of Britons have pets. This is an opportunity. ”

Source: Reference News Network