The latest deal between the Treasury and the palace shows why the cosy system created by David Cameron should be scrapped
The size of the funding increase awarded to King Charles III by the government is unjustifiable, and all the more so at a time when millions of people are struggling with the painful effects of high food, housing and other costs. Teachers have had to fight very hard for a below-inflation offer of 6.5%, along with many other public servants, and the economic outlook is widely accepted to be bleak. It seems extraordinary, in such circumstances, that the government has seen fit to offer the new king a rise estimated to be 45% from 2025. The precise figure will depend on profits from the government property portfolio known as the crown estate. The projected increase of £38.5m, taking the sovereign grant from £86m to £125m, undermines King Charles’s often-cited commitment to “slim down” the monarchy.
The decision, which was taken by a committee of three people – prime minister Rishi Sunak, the chancellor Jeremy Hunt, and the keeper of the privy purse, Sir Michael Stevens – is made far worse by the opaque way in which it was communicated. By emphasising that the percentage of crown estate profits that the royal family receives is being reduced, from 25% to 12%, the Treasury presented the deal as if it were a pay cut. The truth is that estimated profits of £1bn from offshore windfarm leases mean that the crown estate’s income is expected to balloon, placing the royals in line for a huge increase. Lord Turnbull, a former cabinet secretary, used unusually blunt language in criticising what he called “a deliberate attempt to obfuscate”.
