Another week, another controversy for the British Royalty. The year 2023 brought with it a slew of negative press, much of it attributed to the actions of Prince Andrew and Prince Harry. Adding to the bad publicity, the Windsor family faced a grim Christmas present as the staggering cost of maintaining their royal privileges was revealed to the public. According to a report by Newsweek, Prince William is under fire for the size of his “paycheck,” with anti-monarchy campaigners arguing that he has an effective $160,000 per hour salary. The Republic group, along with other anti-monarchy campaigners, are raising concerns about the prince’s income.
Buckingham Palace has countered these claims by stating that not all of Prince William’s income should be considered “taxpayers’ money.” They also argue that the use of the word “pay” is inaccurate, as some of the revenue comes from the feudal-era property estate from the Duchy of Cornwall, which is used to fund the public, private, and charitable activities of the Duke and his immediate family. Republic’s chief executive, Graham Smith, stated, “William likes to claim he works hard, adding one issue after another to his list of missions. First he’ll tackle Middle East peace, then the environment and now homelessness. The truth is he barely works at all. It takes a deep sense of entitlement and a complete lack of serious scrutiny for William, Kate and the others to rake in multi-million pound fortunes, to enjoy the status and privileges of their positions while doing so little.”
Official analysis of the court circular revealed that Prince William completed 172 royal engagements in 2023, with each activity usually lasting an hour. The Prince of Wales has an annual income through the Duchy of Cornwall of £22 million (around $27.5 million), representing up to £127,000 (roughly $160,000) per engagement completed by him, a situation that is difficult to defend.
Republic’s allegations that the £22 million is taxpayers’ money is countered by the fact that the Duchy was never “brought into public ownership” by Parliament. The royals view it as a “private estate” that generates money to support the function of the monarchy, while the Sovereign Grant, which represents a percentage of profits from the Crown Estate, is the source of resources that is usually referred to as the “monarchy’s public funding.”
According to a report by The National, Prince Charles now receives a similar income from state asset the Duchy of Lancaster, which means he is costing taxpayers almost £52,000 an hour. Even Princess Anne, branded the hardest working royal of the year, only carried out the equivalent of two months’ work in 2023 with 457 engagements.
The revelation of the staggering income of the British royal family has sparked outrage and debate among the public and many are questioning the fairness and necessity of the funds. This puts the future of the monarchy under a microscope, as the public continues to scrutinize the cost and relevance of maintaining this centuries-old institution.
