Pay Freeze for Queen in UK Austerity Measures
EmailIn a sign of dire economic times across the pond, Buckingham Palace is now doing some budget busting, with the queen herself due for a pay freeze and Prince Charles set to foot the bill for some major expenses.
Queen Elizabeth II will reportedly see a pay freeze until 2015, as new austerity measures in the U.K. have cut funding for the royal household. She reportedly receives about $47 milllion a year taxpayer funding.
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Taxpayer funding for royal travel and royal palaces has also been put on the chopping block, so British taxpayers will no longer foot the bill for Prince William and Kate Middleton’s travels and security. The tab for the duke and duchess of Cambridge’s expenses will now be picked up by Prince Charles. The new measures also will lead to fewer royal parties and events, and no repairs for the royal palaces.
The queen has even approved renting out fancy rooms at St. James’s Palace as party venues during the 2012 London Olympics, according to the Associated Press. Companies that hold royal warrants – those that have longstanding ties to the royal family – will be given the opportunity to rent the spaces.
“You don’t really realize, but the queen is going around Buckingham Palace, turning off the lights, having fewer staff, even turning the heating down. She sometimes even writes letters in her very own fur coat,” Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Royal magazine, told ABC News.
Under the new agreement, the queen will see 15 percent of the profits every two years from the Crown Estate, whose portfolio includes Regent Street, Windsor Great Park and more than half the country’s shoreline, the U.K.’s Daily Telegraph newspaper reported.
The move is the latest by Parliament to cut the U.K.’s major deficit problem. The country’s new coalition government, led by Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron, introduced a series of major austerity cuts when it took power in 2010, slashing a number of programs.
Parliament does, however, recognize the huge draw that the royal family brings to the country, ushering in $785 million to Great Britain every year.
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Exactly what does she do to “earn” her pay?
Posted by: WorkingClass | December 5, 2011, 8:07 am 8:07 am
Pay? It’s an allowance isn’t it?
Posted by: newcountryman | December 5, 2011, 8:50 am 8:50 am
Can we freeze cogressional pay? Just a thought.
Posted by: newcountryman | December 5, 2011, 9:04 am 9:04 am
congressional…sorry.
Posted by: newcountryman | December 5, 2011, 9:04 am 9:04 am
Let’s start w/ BHO’s pay reduction to 200k/yr.
Posted by: Wilson | December 5, 2011, 9:19 am 9:19 am
Her name isn’t Kate Middleton any longer, and it’s inappropriate to still be referring to her by her maiden name now that she’s married and uses a different name and style. Does ABC use the phrase ‘President Barack Obama and Michelle LaVaughn Robinson’ when referring to the first couple?
Posted by: Minorkey1 | December 5, 2011, 9:34 am 9:34 am
MINORKEY!; EXCUSE ME!
Posted by: newcountryman | December 5, 2011, 9:38 am 9:38 am
Workingclass- she is the head of the Commonwealth of Nations, which involves 54 countries. Not only is she the monarch of the royal family (which has a huge set of responsibilities), she also has a collection of representatives called governor-generals to keep constant contact with on top of whatever charity or social functions. I almost have to laugh at your comment. It takes a very special person to handle the pressure and the workload that the Queen does on a daily basis. My grandmother admired the woman very much and I grew up with HRH as a role model. My grandmother was also a monarch of her family and kept over 500 relatives in contact, worked a full time job, and did a lot of work on the side with charity and girl scouts. She was an amazing person. I can imagine the Queen is very much the same. By all means, look into the history of the Queen and learn a thing or two before jumping to conclusions that her life is so easy.
Posted by: Jenny | December 5, 2011, 9:41 am 9:41 am
We could just give Boehner an expense account and he can submit the bill for whatever No Tell Motel that rents rooms by the hour he’s stayed in and whatever bar tab he has racked up. Actually, come to think of it, that would probably be more than his salary. Forget it.
Posted by: howdymo1 | December 5, 2011, 10:08 am 10:08 am
Surprised to see that not just the queen, but various other royals receive taxpayer moneys for lifestyles and palaces
Posted by: yeah.i.said.it | December 5, 2011, 11:42 am 11:42 am
“Parliament does, however, recognize the huge draw that the royal family brings to the country, ushering in $785 million to Great Britain every year.”
For all of you people wondering why they get paid, did you not read the last sentence. I’m pretty sure if you were worth that much you’d expect something for it. However, I am all for getting rid of excess crap like footing the bill for the grandchildren and parties.
Now let’s hope our gov can get the POTUS to do the same. I tired of hearing about all the trips and parties that my money goes to.
Posted by: J | December 5, 2011, 12:20 pm 12:20 pm
“For all of you people wondering why they get paid, did you not read the last sentence. I’m pretty sure if you were worth that much you’d expect something for it.” — So, I guess we should give every movie star taxpayer dollars since they are what draws people to visit Hollywood. And, just for the record, when I went to London this past spring, I went for the museums and theaters, not for the “royal” family. And, Jenny, I’m sure there are a lot of people in England that can do the “work” of the queen for far less than the British taxpayers are paying her and her family.
Posted by: WorkingClass | December 5, 2011, 12:40 pm 12:40 pm
MINORKEY1 – Get real!
These people are glorified welfare pigs!
They are taking more & more health care away from the elderly, yet william & kate are getting renovated apartments at Kensington Palace and all on the tax payers!
Mrs.Obama is the Presidents wife!
Posted by: Hedi | December 5, 2011, 2:22 pm 2:22 pm
Some of you idiots really do not read the entire artical, or are incapable of understanding the meaning everything written in this artical. The Queen and Royal Family receive 15% of the income from Royal Estates, which means she has an effective 85% tax rate. The govenment takes the rest.
She has a full time schedule that would send most people to retire homes or hospitals, and she does this work for free. It is her responsibility to pay to mainatain royal residences, from the 15% of income from the very estates she owns and runs, that means to heat, cool and staff these estates. Not an easy task by any yardstick.
She and her family also support and contribute to hundreds of Charities, helping the poor, the college bound, the farmers and artists in England. Without the help of the Royal Family many of these charities would not exisit and certianly could not do the good work they perform every day to enhance British life.
The Royal Family is also one of the countries leading tourist attractions, Buckinham Palace, the changing of the gaurds, St James palace and Kinsington Palace tours just to name a few. Would you lilke it of the Government told you people could pay 40 pounds to walk through your house, see the things you own and treasure and you would get 15% of the income, and you have no choice in the matter?
The Royal family would be better off to take back their lands and renounce their duties in Great Britan and become legal residance of Jamaca while living in London to avoid taxes like so many wealthy Brits do. one day maybe they’ll get smart and tell you all to toss off!!
Posted by: John | December 5, 2011, 2:38 pm 2:38 pm
I think they should still get pay something if they took their time to work in publick offices. I know they have a lot of money and live a priviledge life style but they should still get pay for their time. They need to stop spending on the media just to boost their image. I think a lot of the stuffs they are paying the media for like MSN.COM to publish on the Internet is irrelevent, all it is showing to the world and their tax payers is how much money they are wasting to look good and compete with the USA. The truth most normal living American don’t really care about that just like the way they don’t care much for hollywood stars.
Posted by: AB | December 5, 2011, 2:52 pm 2:52 pm