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According to the report submitted by Buckingham Palace, Thursday, in the fiscal year 2022-2023, ending on March 31, 107.5 million pounds (more than 46 billion forints) were allocated in official expenses for the management of the Kingdom Foundation.
This is five percent more than the net amount spent on the monarchy in the previous year.
According to the report, the rise was primarily caused by the renovation costs of Buckingham Palace, the first office and residence of the monarchy in London. In the last financial year, £43m was spent renovating the high-rise mansion in central London.
The 775-room mansion, built by the Duke of Buckingham in 1703 and surrounded by an expansive garden, and which has served as a royal residence since 1837, began its biggest-ever renovation in 2017 and is expected to run until 2027, on a shoestring budget. at a value of 369 million pounds sterling.
The renovation cannot be delayed, because Buckingham Palace’s 32 kilometers of plumbing, 160 kilometers of electrical grid and 40-50-year-old mechanical equipment are so worn out that
According to experts, the risk of fire and pipe explosion is increasing.
The palace houses a large part of the priceless royal art collection, the Royal Collection, and may also be at risk in the event of fire or flooding caused by the failure of the old infrastructure.
There is also a cautionary tale: in 1992, a massive fire destroyed Windsor Castle, and it took five years to recover the damage. According to expert calculations, a similar fire at Buckingham Palace could cause damage worth a quarter of a billion pounds.
The last time Buckingham Palace underwent a comprehensive, though not complete, renovation was 71 years ago, in 1952, the year the second monarch died last September. Queen Elizabeth ascended the throne.
The Sovereign Grant earmarked for the monarchy has been increased to 25 per cent of annual budget payments to Crown Estate, the independent holding company that manages royal estates, commercial properties and other investments, between 2017 and 2027, from the previous 15. percent, specifically to fund the renovation of Buckingham Palace.
The Sovereign Grant amounted to £86.3m in the last financial year, the same figure as the previous year. This equates to an expenditure of £1.29 per UK resident.
However, the actual material expenditures of the monarchy exceeded this by £21.2 million, and this was contributed, in addition to the costs of renovating Buckingham Palace, by the large-scale farewells of the late King and the new King, the Third Prince. The expenses of King Charles’ inauguration, as well as high inflation.We’ve previously written that, according to the Republican Caucus, while the royal family claims its support costs are very low, there are plenty of hidden costs. The monarchy costs taxpayers more than £345 million (about HUF 150 billion) annually. According to the Republic, it should be borne in mind that the Sovereign Grant is not used to cover security costs, which are normally charged to the Metropolitan Police.
secondly. Queen Elizabeth – the third. Caroli’s mother – died on 8 September 2022, aged 97 and the 71st year of her reign, at her summer residence in Scotland, Balmoral Castle.
According to the annual report on the management of the monarchy issued Thursday, the farewell ceremony for the late king cost 1.6 million pounds (688 million forints).
Most of the difference between the state appropriations paid for the operation of the monarchy and the actual expenditures was covered by the exploitation of 20.7 million pounds of reserves formed from the interest of the sovereign grant.
According to the administration’s statement, family members participated in more than 2,700 local and foreign official events in the past fiscal year.
The royal family has also made efforts to save energy: occupied rooms in the residences can be heated to a maximum of 19 degrees during the winter heating season, and unoccupied rooms to a maximum of 16 degrees.
Royal spending increased by 5% during the subsistence crisis. But don’t worry, the heating has been turned off in one of the twenty huge homes
Republic responded.
Cover image source: Getty Images
