Last Updated:
Critics have argued taxpayer spending on the events was too large and out of touch given the huge demands on stretched public funds and economising in recent years by many Britons
Britain’s King Charles III with the St Edward’s Crown on his head attends the coronation ceremony inside Westminster Abbey in London on May 6, 2023.
(Image: AFP/File)
Anti-monarchists have condemned as “obscene”, “excessive” and “unethical” the final bill of King Charles III’s coronation last year, which cost British taxpayers £72 million ($90.7 million).
Critics have argued taxpayer spending on the events was too large and out of touch given the huge demands on stretched public funds and economising in recent years by many Britons. According to official figures, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) spent £50.3 million, while the interior ministry’s costs for policing the “once-in-a-generation” event totalled £21.7 million.
Charles was formally crowned monarch at Westminster Abbey in a May 2023 ceremony attended by dignitaries from around the world. A star-studded concert at Windsor Castle took place the following night.
Anti-monarchists have been stepping up their criticisms of the royal family and what they say are excessive and unfair financial benefits it receives in straitened times. The country has been gripped by post-pandemic cost pressures, with decades-high inflation during much of last year, while flatlining economic growth has led to declining living standards.
Sceptics noted that the UK monarch, who receives more public money than European counterparts, is a multimillionaire able to foot more of the institution’s bills. More than half of Britons told pollsters YouGov before the coronation that the government should not be funding it.
The royals this month faced calls for more transparency and reform of their private estates, after an investigation alleged they have been profiting from public bodies while benefiting from major tax exemptions.
In its annual report and accounts, DCMS said it “successfully delivered on the central weekend of His Majesty King Charles III’s Coronation, enjoyed by many millions both in the UK and across the globe”. It was the lead government department working with the royal household on the coronation, which it described as a “once-in-a-generation moment”.
It added that the events “offered a unique opportunity to celebrate and strengthen our national identity and showcase the UK to the world”.
The lavish affair included a gold carriage procession and a display of the monarchy’s jewels. “It just strikes me as unethical for the royals to spend that kind of money on a parade when children are going to school without meals,” Graham Smith, chief executive of Republic — a group that campaigns to abolish the British monarchy — told CNN. “It was just a very big parade.”
(With agency inputs)
- Location :
London, United Kingdom (UK)
