Head of State Expenditure

THE FOLLOWING ANNOUNCEMENT IS ISSUED BY THE PRESS SECRETARY TO THE QUEEN

Head of State Expenditure
69 pence per person per year

The Treasury contributed the equivalent of 69 pence per person in the country to enable The Queen to carry out the duties of Head of State, Buckingham Palace announced today at the publication of its annual report of royal finances.

The Royal Public Finances annual report, which includes details of public expenditure on property and travel, states that Head of State expenditure for 2008-09 at £41.5 million (including VAT of £2.1 million) has increased by 1.5% in real terms. Over the past eight years it has decreased in real terms by 1.3%.

Sir Alan Reid, Keeper of the Privy Purse, said:

“The money provided by the taxpayer to enable The Queen to fulfil her role as Head of State, is equivalent to 69 pence per person in the country . This is the annual cost, not the daily, weekly or monthly cost and is lower in real terms than it was in 2001.

“The reduction in the amount of Head of State expenditure in real terms reflects the continuous attention the Royal Household pays to obtaining the best value for money in all areas of expenditure.

“The year under review has seen significant investment in IT projects with the launch of the new British Monarchy website and the implementation of new personnel, payroll and on-line recruitment systems.

“Increased expenditure on Property Maintenance in 2008-09 was made possible by increased receipts from commercial lettings and the Royal Collection.

“Expenditure on Royal Travel has increased due principally to lower availability of aircraft from the RAF and the consequential increase in the use of commercial charter aircraft, often at short notice..

“Last year, we reported that with no increase in funding over the next 10 years the backlog in essential maintenance projects was estimated to be £32 million by 2018.

“Allowing for the cost of re-decorating the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace, and Windsor at £4.5million, a further year without an increase in funding and revisions to estimates of repairs, it is estimated that the backlog will have increased to £40million by 2019.

“We will continue to work with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport to agree the criteria for assessing the backlog and thereby improve the estimate of the additional funding required,” he added.

This combined report is available online at www.royal.gov.uk