Republican Mythbuster

This claim is bogus. In their 2023 audit, the independent financial consultancy Brand Finance found that “the recurring financial benefits of the Monarchy are estimated to be over £8.50 per person, per year, and the recurring costs are estimated to be approximately £5.50 per person, per year.”

The estimated annual contribution of the Monarchy to the UK economy sits at £1.7 billion. This contribution is calculated by factoring in the Crown Estate’s surplus and the indirect effect on various industries such as tourism, trade, media and the arts.

It is also useful to compare the total expenditure from the Sovereign Grant with other public services:

Cost of the Sovereign Grant: £1.29 per head.

Cost of Parliament: £7.33 per head.

Cost of the BBC: £57 per head.

Cost of the NHS: £4,300 per head.

The Crown Estate is a collection of land and holdings owned by The King in right of the Crown which date back to the Norman Conquest in 1066. The revenues of Crown land in England and Wales were used to fund the business of government in this country until 1751 when the cost of civil government exceeded the income creating personal debt for the Sovereign.

To mediate the ballooning debt, King George III surrendered the income from the Crown lands to Parliament and repudiated the cost of civil government. In return for his hereditary revenues, Parliament granted the King a fixed civil list annuity. Since 1760, monarchs have continued to voluntarily surrender these hereditary revenues. Until 2012, this came in the form of four different elements: The Civil List, and three different Grants-in-Aid for travel, communications, and maintenance of royal residencies.

The Sovereign Grant Act was passed in 2012, consolidating funding into one single grant. Despite the change in funding arrangements, the source of the Grant remains the revenues from the Crown Estate. Each year, His Majesty’s Treasury calculate 15-25% of the Estate’s profits and endow the Monarch with that sum to support them in carrying out their duties in service to the nation.

During the Accession Council, the Sovereign may declare their wish to continue these financial arrangements. His Majesty King Charles III made the following declaration at his Accession Council in 2022: ”I take this opportunity to confirm my willingness and intention to continue surrendering the hereditary revenues including the crown estate to my government for the benefit of all in return for the sovereign grant which supports my official duties as head of state and head of nation” - King Charles III

Read more about Royal Finances.

Constitutional monarchies number some of the most democratic and socially mobile states in the world. 10 out of the top 20 countries in the Democracy Index - which measures civil liberties and fundamental political freedoms - are constitutional monarchies despite constitutional monarchies accounting for just 30 out of 195 countries in the world.

Conversely, constitutional monarchies occupy 9 out of the top 20 most socially mobile states in the Global Social Mobility Index.

The United Kingdom consistently scores within the top 20 of both indices. Concerns about these matters rest squarely at the door of Number 10 Downing Street, not Buckingham Palace.

The Royal Household is not a public authority, its exemptions from the Freedom of Information Act are held on that basis.

The pomp and pageantry of monarchy has international appeal, with millions flocking from around the world every year to visit the residences which house the beating heart of a 1,000-year-old institution. This allure simply does not exist in republics.

The royal boost to international tourism benefits the United Kingdom to the tune of £64 million every year, with an additional £20 million brought in by extra visitors motivated by the Coronation in 2023. In 2022, Windsor Great Park became the most visited British attraction for the second year in a row, with the Tower of London beating some of the country’s best-known museums and galleries.

Lana Bennett, CEO of Tours International, says the royal events “catapult” the country into the limelight and research conducted by VisitBritain suggests 60% of tourists are “likely” to visit places associated with the Royal Family.

The King is not required to pay taxation but does so voluntarily on all private income. If the Sovereign paid inheritance tax on the demise of their predecessor, assets held in trust by the Crown would be affected.

Residences such as Sandringham and Balmoral, for example, which serve private as well as state functions, may have to be sold. Works of art and contents of the royal archives may also be subject to taxation. There is no red line between what is private and public. The Monarchy also requires sufficient resources to enable it to continue to perform its traditional role in national life and have a degree of financial independence from the Government.

His Majesty does pay inheritance tax on gifts and bequests to anybody else.

Rex non potest peccare. The Crown is inviolable and not liable to be prosecuted or proceeded against civil or criminal cases. Proceedings against the Sovereign, who serves as the personification of the state, could be used to excessively interfere in the execution of their duties. The very same principles are applied in republics with presidential immunities in the United States, Germany, France, Italy, and Finland to name but a few.

Members of the Royal Family do not enjoy these legal rights. The Princess Royal was prosecuted under the Dangerous Dogs Act in 2002 after an incident involving her dog, Dotty, and a member of the public. The Princess pleaded guilty and was consequently fined.

The House of Lords is an essential counterweight to the politicised Members of the House of Commons, who are subject to outside pressures and their own Party whips. It is the greatest representation of an apolitical chamber, which can focus alone on the important aspects of legislation that comes before it.

Parties in Government may institute rash, immature plans of social reform that, if carried out, may be dangerous to the peace or economic stability of the country. The Lords still retain the capacity to slow that legislation down, point out its weaknesses, and send it back to the Commons for further debate.

Put simply, they can halt measures of a radical nature until the ‘mind of the country’ has been made up.

Read more about the UK’s Constitution.