Buckingham Palace has released the annual Sovereign Grant report – the money which comes from the public purse through profits from the Crown Estate. Apparently, spending by the Royal Family exceeded its income from public funds last year and topped £100 million as the programme of repair works on Buckingham Palace was stepped up. Here’s what you need to know.
The Royal Household spent £16.1 million more than it earned from the Sovereign Grant – the publicly funded part of the Royal Family’s income. The annual report of palace finances shows it received £51.8 million for the day-to-day running of the monarchy and an extra £34.5 million for the Buckingham Palace redevelopment – referred to by the household as “reservicing.” But total spending last year was £102.4 million as the building work on the palace reached an intensive phase.
Queen Elizabeth And The Royal Family Went Over Budget This Past Year – Spending More Than They Are Bringing In
The controversial spring trip that Prince William and Kate Middleton took to the Caribbean was the most expensive royal tour, coming in at £226,000. The ongoing, 10-year-long refurbishment of Buckingham Palace and other travel costs—including the expensive royal train—accounted for many of the additional expenses.
The Sovereign Grant is public funding to support the official duties of Queen Elizabeth II and other costs such as official travel, staff for working royals and the upkeep of occupied palaces. The amount of the grant — 86.3 million pounds in 2021-22 — is based on a proportion of profits from the Crown Estate, a vast collection of property across the U.K. The amount is equivalent to costing 1.29 pounds per person in the country. Britain’s royals also have other sources of income, including from tourists paying to visit royal palaces.
Palace officials have said Prince Charles and the royal family pay close attention to rapidly soaring living costs and are “extremely conscious” of the crisis. The annual financial report was published amid heightened scrutiny of Charles’ finances, with recent news reports claiming the heir to the throne had been given millions of pounds in cash in a suitcase and carrier bags by the former prime minister of Qatar.
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