Britain’s Queen Elizabeth to pay for palace upkeep

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth to pay for palace upkeep
Reuters

LONDON, MARCH 25: Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II wants to pay the 15 million pound ($21.42 million) a year Bill for the upkeep of her five royal palaces and castles, the Sunday Mirror newspaper reported.

The state has met the cost of maintaining Royal residences since 1697, providing the monarch with an annual sum known as grant-in-aid to keep the buildings in good repair.

But the Queen’s financial adviser, Sir Michael Peat, said she wanted to lighten the load on the British taxpayer.

Sir Michael, official title Keeper of the Privy Purse, told politicians at a recent House of Commons Public Accounts Committee: “The Queen has always said that she wants to take as little financial support from the taxpayer as possible.“The cost of the monarchy to the taxpayer has come down 55 per cent in real terms during the last 10 years. It is my job to make sure that it comes down further.

“The Queen is responsible and she is particularly interested in minimising expenditure for the taxpayer,” he said.