More than half of Britons think coronation shouldn’t be publicly funded, new poll suggests

More than half of Britons think the King’s coronation should not be funded by the government, according to a new poll.

The YouGov survey, carried out just over two weeks before the event, found 51% of adults questioned believe the ceremony should not be taxpayer funded.

Almost a third – 32% – said it should, while around 18% did not know.

How to watch the King’s coronation on Sky News

The Westminster Abbey coronation, where the King and Queen Consort are set to be crowned, is expected to cost several million pounds, but with no budget revealed and the government not commenting on the expected total cost, the amount of public funds due to be spent remains unknown.

Some unconfirmed predictions suggest Operation Golden Orb could cost between £50m and £100m.

The late Elizabeth II’s coronation cost £912,000 in 1953 – £20.5m in today’s money – while the King’s grandfather George VI was crowned at a cost of £454,000 in 1937 – worth £24.8m in 2023 and the most expensive coronation of the last 300 years.

Critics have branded the event a waste of taxpayers’ money.

Graham Smith, chief executive of anti-monarchy group Republic, called the coronation an “expensive pantomime” and a “slap in the face for millions of people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis”.

Of the 4,246 adults surveyed, 62% of those aged 18 to 24 were not in favour of the coronation being government-funded, while 15% were in favour.

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For those aged 65 and over, the figures were more evenly balanced, with 44% saying it should not be government-funded, and 43% saying it should.

For 25 to 49-year-olds, 25% said the coronation should be government-funded and 55% said it should not, and for 50 to 64-year-olds 46% said it should not be down to government money, while 39% said it should.

As with jubilees and other such events, it is understood the total cost and breakdown of funding will not be available until after it is held on 6 May.

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Oliver Dowden has previously insisted the King and the government are “mindful of ensuring that there is value for the taxpayer” and there will not be “lavishness or excess”.

But Mr Dowden also told the Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee at the start of the year: “It is a marvellous moment in our history and people would not want a dour scrimping and scraping.”