The annual accounts of the British monarchy have just been revealed, showing British taxpayers just how much of their hard-earned money goes on covering the royal’s travel and housing costs.
The royal accounts, which were published on Thursday morning, showed that taxpayer-funded spending had increased by £14.9 million, or 17%, in the last financial year whilst UK GDP fell.
Official royal travel costs came to £4.5 million and utilities to £3.2 million, whilst housekeeping and hospitality costs came to a total of £1.3 million – an increase of 55% in a year.
The monarch’s annual payroll bill amounted to £23.7 million, whilst Prince Charles’s tax bill came to £5.9 million and the cost of official travel for William and Kate’s controversial Caribbean tour added up to £226,383.
The Gold State Coach was used for Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953 and on other state occasions including the Golden Jubilee in 2002. / Image: The Royal Family
The accounts also revealed that Prince Charles’s annual income from the Duchy of Cornwall landed estate, which includes approximately 53,300 hectares of land, over 600 residential lettings and more than 700 agricultural tenancies, increased from £20.4 million to £23 million.
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Graham Smith, chief executive of Campaign group Republic spoke damningly of the figures, drawing attention to the country’s spiralling cost of living emergency which is leaving many to make the choice between heating or eating as a result of very little government support.
He told Wales Online: “As always, while the rest of us face a cost-of-living crisis and continued squeezes on public services, the royals walk off with hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money.”
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The chandeliers in the Waterloo Chamber at Windsor Castle. / Image: The Royal Family
“We need to put the monarchy on a proper budgetary footing, just like any other public body. We need to slash that budget down to below £10m, and only fund what’s required for the functions of the head of state.”
Meanwhile Sir Michael Stevens, Keeper of the Privy Purse, suggested that Buckingham Palace was also facing some challenges itself due to inflation in the aftermath of the pandemic.
He said: “looking ahead, with the Sovereign Grant likely to be flat in the next couple of years, inflationary pressures on operating costs and our ability to grow supplementary income likely to be constrained in the short term, we will continue to deliver against our plans and manage these impacts through our own efforts and efficiencies”.
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The British Army’s Irish Guards trooped their Colour at the first of several events commemorating Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. / Image: The Royal Family
Some key figures from the 2020-2021 royal accounts:
£86.3 million – The total taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant, made up of £51.8 million for the “core” funding and an extra £34.5 million for the reservicing of Buckingham Palace.
9.6% – Proportion of staff from ethnic minority backgrounds working for Buckingham Palace, compared to 8.5% in 2020-21. The target was 10%.
10.6% – Proportion of staff from ethnic minority backgrounds working for Clarence House.
13.6% – Proportion of staff from ethnic minority backgrounds working for Kensington Palace.
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£102.4 million – Official expenditure by the monarchy – a rise of £14.9 million or 17% from £87.5 million in 2020/2021.
£1.29 – Cost per person in the UK of funding the total Sovereign Grant.
£1.3 million– Cost of housekeeping and hospitality for the royal household – an increase of half a million or 55%.
491– Full-time equivalent staff paid for from the Sovereign Grant, with the wage bill coming to £23.7 million.
£63.9 million – Spending on property maintenance – up £14.4 million or 29% from £49.5 million in 2020-21.
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201 – Official engagements carried out by the Queen in the last financial year – 88 more than the 113 she undertook in 2020-2021 during the pandemic.
Almost 2,300 – Official engagements by the royals in the UK and overseas, compared to 1,470 last year.
£138,457 – Charles’s travel costs for trip to Barbados to mark country’s transition to a republic
£4.4 million – The Prince of Wales’s bill for the Cambridges’ activities, plus Charles’s other expenditure including his capital expenditure and transfer to reserves. Charles no longer pays for the Sussexes.
£1.2 million – Decrease in this bill over two years since 2019-2020 when Harry and Meghan were full-time working royals.
£23 million – Charles’s annual private income from the Duchy of Cornwall landed estate, up from £20.4 million in 2020-21.
Feature image – The Royal Family
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Award-winning Northern Quarter restaurant announces shock closure with most heartbreaking statement yet
Daisy Jackson
One of the Northern Quarter’s best restaurants and bars has announced its shock closure, adding to a tidal wave of hospitality casualties.
Cocktail Beer Ramen and Bun – better known to most of us as CBRB – announced the news this evening with a frank and heartbreaking statement.
In it, the late-night Oldham Street business outlined the ‘massive financial strain’ it’s been facing, describing the obstacles that are ‘affecting everyone in the hospitality industry right now’.
CBRB stressed the staggering costs of goods and the doubling of energy bills as the ‘massive factors’ that have forced their hand.
They wrote: “It breaks our heart to have to make this decision and please know, it has not come lightly or without months of deliberation, meetings and rescue plans.
“Countless discussions about a way out of the sh*t that wouldn’t end up coming to this.”
CBRB. Credit: The Manc GroupCBRB. Credit: The Manc GroupCBRB. Credit: The Manc Group
CBRB, which specialises in huge steaming bowls of ramen, delicious small plates and award-winning cocktails, took the time to thank all the customers who have supported the hugely popular independent restaurant over the years.
They also urged people to get out and support their local favourites before it’s too late, writing: “We can guarantee they’ll need it. So many amazing ideas and talented businesses in our industry are struggling and closing almost every day now and they need your help.”
CBRB’s final day will be this Sunday, with bookings and walk-ins operating as normal.
CBRB’s statement in full
This is probably the hardest thing we’ve ever had to write. The worst news we’ve ever had to deliver.
This Sunday will be our last.
The last noodle pull. The last blue drink. The last dinner service.
We want to be as honest with you as possible. After all, it’s you lot that make this place what it is and it’s you who have kept us going as long as we have.
CBRB wouldn’t be where it is today without your amazing love + support over the last 4 years…
The business has been under massive financial strain, that we have unfortunately been unable to pull ourselves out of. The obstacles that have been affecting everyone in the hospitality industry right now. The cost of goods sky rocketing. Energy bills more than doubling. They’re all massive factors and they’ve all made it extremely difficult to continue doing what we love, without compromising on quality.
It breaks our heart to have to make this decision and please know, it has not come lightly or without months of deliberation, meetings and rescue plans. Countless discussions about a way out of the sh*t that wouldn’t end up coming to this.
So for now we just want to thank you. For making this tiny little kitchen and bar become something way bigger than we ever imagined. For making coming to work the last 4 years so much fun. For all the lovely messages, the constant support, for bringing your friends and sharing the love for the food we create.
Thank you for supporting your local Girl Gang. But for now, it’s over.
If we can leave anything behind it’s this. Go and support your local independent bar!
Eat out at your favourite family owned restaurants. Order that takeaway from your local small business. Because we can guarantee they’ll need it. So many amazing ideas and talented businesses in our industry are struggling and closing almost every day now and they need your help.
Bookings and walk ins will operate as normal this week and we’ll keep on slinging the noods and pouring the drinks until the second we have to leave.
2018 – 2023
This week will be a bittersweet one. Come see us for a drink.
Big love, Team CBRB x
Featured image: The Manc Group
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Selfridges to open Louboutin bar with cocktails inspired by its iconic £700 shoes
Georgina Pellant
A new bar inspired by Christian Louboutin’s infamous red-soled shoes is set to open in Selfridges, Manchester Trafford, this year.
Offering a spin on classic cocktails such as the Cosmopolitan alongside some bespoke creations, it will be located in the accessories hall on the lower level of the department store opposite the new Christian Louboutin boutique.
Running for a limited time only, Loubibar celebrates the arrival of the swanky boutique where the designer’s latest Spring collection of signature shoes and accessories are now on display.
At the cocktail bar, shoppers can enjoy bespoke cocktail creations including the Rouge Follies (a spin on the classic Cosmopolitan), the Loubifunk (mixing gin with aromatic notes of cherry and zesty limes) and the amusingly named Loubidoo (a ‘transportive’ cocktail laced with coconuts and lime).
Image: Supplied
Image: Supplied
The 360 bar itself is resplendent in Christian Louboutin’s signature red, with plush red stools and menus, and will serve bespoke red cocktails inspired by the French fashion house, which was first established in Paris over 30 years ago.
First launching in 1992 with a collection for women, swiftly followed by a men’s collection a few years later, its signature red lacquered sole makes the shoes instantly recognisable wherever they go.
2014 welcomed Christian Louboutin Beauté, while in, 2022 the House launched a new category dedicated to Kids and Pets: The LoubiFamily.
Favoured by the likes of the Kardashians and Cardi B, as well as Sarah Jessica Parker’s character Carrie Bradshaw in Sex and the City, they’ve long been considered an iconic symbol of style and quality craftsmanship.
With a prolific collection of shoes, leather goods and accessories, Christian Louboutin now counts more than 150 points of sales around the world.
The new bar’s design incorporates the brand’s playful wit and charm, with the Loubibar itself topped with a lit sign that nods to the decor often seen in Parisian brasseries.
Seating is available around the bar as well as a number of booths all featuring textiles complimenting the adjacent Christian Louboutin boutique, the new cocktail bar is open for a limited time only.
Located in the accessories hall on the lower level, it celebrates the new Christian Louboutin boutique where the designer’s latest Spring collection of signature shoes and accessories are available.