On Thursday, King Charles announced that profits from the £1billion-a-year wind farm should be used for the “broader public good” and not as additional funding for the monarchy.
From the taxes used to support the institution, now £86.3 million a year, he receives 25% of the annual surplus of the Crown Estate (or Crown Estate), including an additional 10% to renovate Buckingham Palace.
Six new offshore wind contracts announced by the Crown Estate on Thursday created a major windfall that could lead to an increase in official funding for the monarchy. The monarch’s right to collect royalties from wind energy was granted by Tony Blair’s Labor government in 2004.
But in his Christmas message, the king highlighted the cost-of-living crisis plaguing the UK and called for extra funding to be “directed towards the wider public good” rather than the monarchy.
Buckingham Palace wanted to reduce the share of profits used to calculate the grant to cover expenses such as travel for official engagements and maintenance of the royal family, in light of “unexpected marine energy revenues”. Palaces..
A review of the percentage of crown estate profits is ongoing at the Treasury and a decision will be made in the coming months. The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Michael Stevens, wrote to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to propose an “appropriate reduction”.
However, anti-monarchy activist group Republica dismissed the move as “a cynical public relations ploy to pre-empt the government’s decision to cut the percentage”. The group’s chief executive, Graham Smith, said the monarch’s statement “reflects an agreement that he has no power to change”.
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