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Queen To Receive A 'Pay Rise' Of £6 Million Ahead Of Palace Refurb

Queen To Receive A 'Pay Rise' Of £6 Million Ahead Of Palace Refurb

To be confirmed in Philip Hammond's autumn budget.

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

The Queen is set to receive a 'pay rise' of almost £6 million ($7.6m) and it is expected that chancellor Philip Hammond will confirm this in his Autumn budget.

The Sovereign Grant will skyrocket from £39.4m ($50.3m) to £82.2m ($104.9m) next year, up from £42.8m ($54.6m) last year, due to the Conservative government raising it to pay for what Royal officials called 'essential' repairs that would 'future-proof' Buckingham Palace.

The cash injection next year will come as the Royal Family's income is boosted even further, with the Crown Estate's profits rocketing by 8.1 percent to £328.8m ($419.8m) for 2016 to 2017.

The Royal Family spent a huge £56.8m ($72.5m) in the 12 months leading up to March. £41.9m ($53.5m) of that money was funded by taxpayers, while the rest came from other income, including property rents.

This means that their spending increased 5.8 percent on last year, or almost double the rate of inflation.

Queen Elizabeth
Queen Elizabeth

Credit: PA

Travel is a big expense for the Royals, with trips accounting for £4.5m ($5.7m) of the bill - that's up half a million pounds from the last 12 months.

According to the Mirror, a royal insider said: "If you're expected to land, be greeted formally by a head of state [and] do all sorts of engagements as you land, there's quite a strong argument to go in as comfortable a fashion as you can, long-haul - to have a decent sleep, sort yourself out."

Prince Charles used the Royal train for a £46,000 ($58,700) two-day visit to the north, stopping off in Yorkshire and Lancashire.

Prince Philip also took a trip on the luxury train to dine at the Royal Marines' Stonehouse Barracks in Devon. The journey cost £18,690 ($23,900).

Some of Prince Andrew's flights cost £115,291 ($147,200), including a £36,000 ($45,900) charter plane trip to Turkey and £28,000 ($35,700) private jet hire whilst in South Africa.

Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace

Credit: PA

Keeper of the Privy Purse Sir lan Reid said it cost everyone in the UK 65p a year. He added: "I believe it represents excellent value for money."

A royal official said of the transport costs: "It does mean that someone like the Queen can arrive first thing in the morning to do engagements rather than having to get up at some ungodly hour to get there.

"She can arrive there rested, briefed and prepared.

"Although it's not the cheapest way to travel, it does represent many of the features we look for in terms of safety, security, not causing disruption to lots of other people, and convenience.

"The environmental aspect is strong as well. In general, we think it's well worth using it in the way we use it."

Sources: BBC, Mirror

Featured Image Credit: PA Images