Royal Family members now have to pay rent, as per King Charles’ new plan
2 min read 27 Mar 2023, 01:55 PM ISTFor years, a number of relatives of the Royal Family have been availing subsidized palace accommodations for their London apartments.
PremiumKing Charles is starting to modernise the monarchy by reducing the finances of the Royal Family, including eliminating subsidised rent and housing for working Royals, according to reports. After his coronation in May, Vice-Admiral Sir Tony Johnstone-Burt and the Keeper of the Privy Purse Sir Michael Stevens will look at inefficiencies in the "top-heavy Royal household".
This means that members of the Royal Family will be expected to pay for their own rent and personal finances, including their homes. Several extended members of the family have been using subsidised palace accommodations for London apartments for years, and that is expected to come to an end. Properties will be let at commercial rates going forward and to people outside the family.
The aim is to decrease the number of Royals financially dependent on the Crown and offer competitive salaries, benefits and pensions to members of staff and potential new hires. Charles reportedly wants the Monarchy to be "fit for purpose" with effective people in effective positions doing effective jobs and being paid appropriately. He is working closely with his son and heir to the throne, Prince William, to plan and carry out these changes.
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In September, shortly after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Royal expert Katie Nicholl discussed the finances of the Royal Family and why estimations of their wealth are "pretty conservative." Forbes magazine estimates the Royal Family's overall wealth to be £28 billion ( ₹2.83 trillion).
The Royal Family takes the profits from the crown estate, which is their portfolio of land and property around the country; the rest goes to the government. As of last year, they took $99 million in terms of the sovereign grant.
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Nicholl said that the queen voluntarily paid income tax on her earnings, thus diverting any criticism over the wealth of the Royal Family. She got expenditure down to the Royal Family essentially costing each member of the British public less than £2.
Ultimately, what's harder to put a price on is what they generate for the country, the monarchy as a business. The business of Royals is one of the biggest businesses in the world. For the Royal wedding or even now, people are getting on planes, they are checking into hotels, they want to be in the capital, they want to be experiencing that moment in history.
