One of the main arguments pushed by those who want to abolish the monarchy is that they are costing the taxpayers too much money. Indeed, a small percentage of British taxpayers’s money goes towards the Royal Family.
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Each year, the Palace publishes its accounts of how much they have made for the year, within that same account, they reveal how much of the taxpayers spend on the Royals. For the previous financial year (April 2023 - March 2024), it was revealed that the Royal Family had a £45 million increase.
Despite the Firm’s annual report, the anti-monarchist group, Republic, who has protested at Windsor Castle before, has claimed that the Royal Family costs a lot more as they don’t take into account certain costs. Therefore, they demand that the cost be reflected correctly and that the Royal Family’s budget be cut down significantly.
Anti-monarchist group claims the Royal Family costs £510m a year
Republic recently published a report claiming that the Royal Family costs taxpayers a whopping £510m a year, compared to the £86m reported by the Palace. As per BBC News, the anti-monarchist group explained that the Sovereign Grant doesn’t reflect the ‘real’ cost of the Royal Family as they don't include security, which the group has estimated costs £150m.
Republic's chief executive, Graham Smith said, as reported by BBC News:
How can we talk about cutting the winter fuel allowance while wasting half a billion pounds on the royals?
As a result, Republic is demanding that the Palace share a report that reflects the cost of security for the Royals, which both the Metropolitan Police and the Palace have refused to publish.
The anti-monarchist group claims that the royals cost £510m, with £99m of that income coming from the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall, which they explain should go to the public purse and not the Royal Family.
Graham Smith said in a statement that Republic is demanding that the royals’ budget be slashed and should be limited to under £10m. As per Town & Country, he said:
Republic is demanding the royal budget be slashed to below £10m, that only Charles receive any public funding.
How much do the British spend on taxes for the Royal Family?
As mentioned above, the Royal Family share their accounts with the public every year. The account can be found on the their website. According to them, the British taxpayers spend £1.29 per person on the Sovereign Grant per year.
As per BBC News, the Palace has refused to comment on the report published by Republic. Moreover, one aspect of the royals that is not reported in the accounts is the economic boost they provide through tourism and supporting overseas trade.
The public is split on the benefits of the Royal Family, according to a YouGov poll, 55 percent of surveyors viewed the monarchy as good value for money, while 30 percent saw it as poor value. The institution of the monarchy was seen positively by 59 percent negatively by 32 percent, while King Charles was seen positively by 63 percent, negatively by 29 percent.
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Sources used:
BBC News: ‘Royals really cost £510m, anti-monarchists say’
Town & Country: ‘Campaigners Claim The Royal Family Costs Britain Half a Billion Pounds Each Year’
Royal Family website: ‘Financial reports 2022-23’
