In June, the official report for the Royal Family’s expenses was published. It showed in detail where the money given to the Firm was spent and how much for each element.
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As you can imagine, the Royal Family spent a lot of money, however, next year may be different as the government plans to make changes to the Sovereign Grant’s rate. This would mean that King Charles and the rest of the Royal Family may see their budget reduced for next year.
For those that don’t know, the Sovereign Grant is a grant given to the Royal Family to pay for their staff, and maintenance of the palaces in England, basically covering all of the Monarch’s official expenses as Head of State.
In return, King Charles gives money to the government through the money he earns from the Crown Estate.
The government is changing the Sovereign Grant rate
According to Sky News, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and Keeper of the Privy Purse Sir Michael Stevens, who are Royal Trustees reviewed the grant and came to the conclusion to reduce the rate as the Crown Estate had seen a surge in profits.
The profits made from the Crown Estate are given to the government, which then gives back a certain amount to the Royal Family. Previously, the rate given back to the Royal Family was 25% but due to the surge in profits thanks to wind farms, the rate has been dropped to 12%.
As Sky News explains, reducing the grant to 12% means the amount of money given back to the firm will drop by £24m next year. The Sovereign Grant’s total amount will remain at £86.3m for 2024.
Jeremy Hunt said:
The new Sovereign Grant rate reflects the unexpected significant increase in The Crown Estate's net profits from offshore wind developments, while providing enough funding for official business as well as essential property maintenance, including completing the 10-year reservicing of Buckingham Palace.
Read more:King Charles allegedly upset with Prince William as he’s forced to pay rent on favourite £1.2M home
This headline is wrong and misleading.
— Leigh Jones (@leighsus) July 21, 2023
The Crown Estate is a semi independent property company that pays its profits to the Treasury.
The Treasury pays some of that out as the Sovereign Grant to fund the royals.
Taxes aren't paying for this.https://t.co/uwl5Cz0WYP
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When it comes to the profits the Crown Estate earns through the offshore wind farms, King Charles asked the Keeper of the Privy Purse to use that money for ‘the wider public good’.
In practice, this change doesn’t directly affect King Charles and the rest of the Royal Family as the total amount of money from the Sovereign Grant remains at £86.3m. However, as reported by The Guardian, the King will likely see an increase in income in 2025 with a yearly stipend worth £124.8m. Then in 2026, it should increase to £126m.
What does change, is how much money goes into the treasury, which will get ‘a multimillion-pound boost’.
Sources used:
Sky News: ‘Sovereign Grant changed after Crown Estate sees profits surge’
The Guardian: 'King Charles to receive huge pay rise from UK taxpayers’
