The Queen will not be granted an annual allowance worth almost £360,000 from parliament to fund official duties – despite the previous consort, Prince Philip, being paid the same sum.
The funding structures of the Royal Familywere subject to scrutiny by the National Audit Office (NAO) – the UK’s independent public spending watchdog.
A report on the royal household’s spending and accountability was published on Friday as part of the NAO’s work to improve transparency.
It suggested the King‘s diary is expected to be busier than his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II – in part due to her scaling back engagements due to the pandemic.
The monarch could “alter future funding needs in substantial ways” as a result, the NAO concluded.
The report said: “Parliament provided Prince Philip with a separate annuity worth £359,000 per annum.
“Queen Camilla will not receive a separate annuity and the Queen’s activities will be funded from the (Sovereign) Grant.”
What is the Sovereign Grant?
The Sovereign Grant is a single grant supporting the monarch’s official business as head of state and covers central staff costs and running expenses of the Royal household – including official receptions and parties.
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It also funds maintenance of Royal palaces in England and travel costs for engagements and visits.
In exchange, the King gives revenue from the Crown Estate to the government.
The Sovereign Grant is calculated based on 25% of the Crown Estate’s annual profits.
A total of £86.3m was granted for 2022-2023, the same as the previous year.
The Sovereign Grant replaced the former Civil List – which saw the late Queen given a payment, together with a number of government grants, to cover her official expenses – in 2011.
Image: The late Prince Philip, pictured with the late Queen in Dublin in 2011, continued to receive an annuity until he died
But the late Duke of Edinburgh continued to receive the £359,000 annuity every year despite the change in the way the royal family’s activities were funded by taxpayers.
The new legislation included a provision for Philip, who died aged 99 in 2021, to continue receiving the annuity for his lifetime.
Now, new laws would need to be created in order for Camilla to receive the funding.
The King’s future schedule, which has not yet been finalised, is likely to be busier than his late mother’s, with events and travel reduced in part due to the COVID pandemic.
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Royal Household spending revealed
“It can reasonably be assumed the King will be hosting more events and travelling to more engagements within the UK and overseas at the request of the government,” the NAO report said.
However, the watchdog suggested there would be sufficient funds from the Sovereign Grant to pay for any extra costs.
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Image: Pic: AP
In the past financial year, the royal household’s total expenditure for 2023 was £117.3m – of which, £107.5m was funded by the public.
Millions spent on Buckingham Palace refurbishment
A total of £369m has been earmarked for a 10-year programme to renovate Buckingham Palace, with more than £185m spent between 2017 and 2023, the NAO said.
The royal household said the refurbishment, which includes upgrading cabling, plumbing and heating, is “on track” and is “not expected to go over budget”.
A value-for-money audit report on the major works is due to be published by the NAO next year.
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Plans for an external visitor centre have been abandoned after it was determined a “more suitable solution” is available inside Buckingham Palace, the NAO report found.
New wind farm deals could boost the Crown Estate’s coffers by an extra £1bn a year – which could increase the Sovereign Grant by more than £100m annually.
However, the King asked for wind farm profits to be used for the wider public good in January.
Sir Keir Starmer has urged anyone with information on the Jeffrey Epstein case to come forward after Andrew Mountbatten Windsor missed the deadline to appear in front of US Congress.
US legislators have criticised Andrew for what they describe as “silence” amid their probe into Epstein after he failed to respond to their request for an interview.
When asked about Andrew missing the deadline and whether the former princeshould help the case in any way he can, Sir Keir said on his way to the G20 summit in South Africa: “I don’t comment on this particular case.”
He added that “a general principle I’ve held for a very long time is that anybody who has got relevant information in relation to these kind of cases should give that evidence to those that need it”.
Andrew is not legally obliged to talk to Congress and has always vigorously denied any wrongdoing.
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Image: Sir Keir Starmer spoke to reporters on his way to the G20 in South Africa. Pic: Reuters
It comes as Marjorie Taylor Greene, a loyal supporter-turned-critic of US President Donald Trump, said on Friday she is resigning from Congress in January.
Ms Greene’s resignation followed a public falling-out with Mr Trump in recent months, as the congresswoman criticised him for his stance on files related to Epstein, as well as on foreign policy and healthcare.
Members of the House Oversight Committee had requested a “transcribed interview” with Andrew in connection with his “long-standing friendship” with Epstein, the paedophile financier who took his own life in a New York prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking and conspiracy charges.
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But after saying they had not heard back, Democrats Robert Garcia and Suhas Subramanyam accused Andrew of hiding.
Their statement read: “Andrew Mountbatten Windsor’s silence in the face of the Oversight Democrat’s demand for testimony speaks volumes.
“The documents we’ve reviewed, along with public records and Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s testimony, raise serious questions he must answer, yet he continues to hide.
“Our work will move forward with or without him, and we will hold anyone who was involved in these crimes accountable, no matter their wealth, status, or political party. We will get justice for the survivors.”
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It follows Andrew being stripped of his prince and Duke of York titles earlier this month.
He had previously agreed to stop using his titles, but had expected to remain a prince and retain his dukedom, ahead of the publication of the memoirs of the late Ms Giuffre, who had accused him of sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager – an accusation he denies.
A 13-year-old girl has been arrested on suspicion of murdering a woman in Swindon.
Police said the teenager was detained following an incident in Baydon Close, Moredon, in the Wiltshire town on Friday evening.
Officers responded to reports of disorder inside a house. When they arrived, a woman in her 50s living at the address was found to be not breathing. She was declared dead at the scene.
There were no other reported injuries.
Image: Forensic officers are at the scene to collect evidence
Detective Inspector Darren Ambrose, from Wiltshire Police’s major crime investigation team, said: “This is a serious incident in which a woman has sadly died.
“We have set up a cordon at the address while an investigation is carried out.
“I can confirm that we have arrested a teenage girl in connection with this incident and we are not looking for anyone else.”
Police have asked people not to speculate about the incident online as this could prejudice the case.
A police statement read: “Residents can expect to see an increased police presence in the area while we continue carrying out our enquiries into the woman’s death.
Rail fares are to be frozen for the first time in 30 years, the government has announced.
Ministers promised that millions of rail travellers will save hundreds of pounds on regulated fares, including season tickets and peak and off-peak returns between major cities.
The fare freeze applies to England and services run by English train operators.
People commuting to work three days a week using flexi-season tickets will save £315 a year travelling from Milton Keynes to London, £173 travelling from Woking to London and £57 from Bradford to Leeds, the government said.
The changes are part of Labour’s plans to rebuild a publicly owned Great British Railways. Other planned changes include tap in-tap out and digital ticketing, as well as investing in superfast Wi-Fi.
Image: The freeze applies to regulated fares, including season tickets and peak and off-peak returns. Pic: iStock
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the government was introducing a freeze on rail fares for the first time in 30 years, which “will ease the pressure on household finances and make travelling to work, school or to visit friends and family that bit easier”.
“We all want to see cheaper rail travel, so we’re freezing fares to help millions of passengers save money,” Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said.
“Commuters on more expensive routes will save more than £300 per year, meaning they keep more of their hard-earned cash.”
Rail unions and passenger groups welcomed the move, praising how it will make travel more affordable for passengers and promote more sustainable travel alternatives.
Eddie Dempsey, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, said: “More affordable fares will encourage greater use of public transport, supporting jobs, giving a shot in the arm to local economies and helping to improve the environment.”
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said the rail fare freeze “will be a huge relief to working people”.
“This is the right decision, at the right time, to help passengers be able to afford to make that journey they need to take, and to help grow our railway in this country, because the railway is Britain’s green alternative – taking cars and lorries off our congested roads and moving people and goods safely around our country in an environmentally-friendly way,” Mick Whelan, general secretary of the train drivers union Aslef, said.
The Tories welcomed the move but said the government was “late to the platform”.
Shadow transport secretary Richard Holden said: “In government, the Conservatives kept fares on the right track with below-inflation rises and consistently called for no further hikes to protect hard-working commuters.”