Creative accounting

Royal Mint
National Debt

The Shocking Truth About
The Royals' Finances

By Norman Baker author former MP and member of the Privy Council.

This tax statement poses more questions than it answers.

V3ra

David49

Other celebrities get massive commission for wearing a certain brand, as long as it's all open and declared if the Royals did the same it would reduce the cost of the Monarchy.

Seriously???

Public engagements are work we expect the royals to do, they are expected to dress appropriately if that costs £100k+ each year then it's tax deductible. If we want them to be value for money and pay tax on their income they are entitled to claim expenses just like any of us would.

My own view is that I support the Monarchy but they should be more accountable with no hangers on. Prince William owns the Duchy of Cornwall which is in fact a company and pays tax in the same way as any other company. Much of the property the RF live in is Crown Estate it provides the security they need, they are extremely wealthy but the Duke of Westminster has no public function and has wealth more than Charles and William combined.

On their private income they should pay tax, in practice it's not going to make much difference because they will manage their private wealth in the way that other billionaires do now. So unless we turn communist and dispossess the wealthy nothing is going to change much.

I doubt it.

V3ra

David49

Other celebrities get massive commission for wearing a certain brand, as long as it's all open and declared if the Royals did the same it would reduce the cost of the Monarchy.

Seriously???

They pay for their clothes out of their own pockets, not from the public allowance though, so it wouldn’t save the public anything if they advertised what they wore.

It would also seriously cheapen the brand, even if was the Williamson pink diamond brooch, advertised as ‘similar available from Cartier, cost £25m.’ Really?

Oh. I don't think I noticed that!

NotSpaghetti

I think this was one of the issues with Meghan now you mention it - She wasn't expecting to have to pay for outfits apparently.

and she expected to be paid if she undertook outside engagements.

David49

Other celebrities get massive commission for wearing a certain brand, as long as it's all open and declared if the Royals did the same it would reduce the cost of the Monarchy.

Seriously???

MT62

AI isn’t always 100% correct.

You can check the sources for the information provided on AI though, it gives references for you to do that. Many queries have multiple source responses, so are very reliable. If the only source is Reddit or similar, I’d ignore it.

AI isn’t always 100% correct.

Sago

Toula

If you ask AI how much you earn in order to pay £12m in tax, computer says you earn between £26-£27m pa. King pays £12.9 million in tax 24/25. PoW paid £7.76m for same year. Kate got told off once for spending £1m in one day on clothes. Sums just don't add up, and I am not an accountant.

Can you evidence that the Princess of Wales was berated for spending 1million on clothes?

In a word, no. But I suppose there are people who read this bull shit and believe it.

I think this was one of the issues with Meghan now you mention it - She wasn't expecting to have to pay for outfits apparently.

Other celebrities get massive commission for wearing a certain brand, as long as it's all open and declared if the Royals did the same it would reduce the cost of the Monarchy.

Nell82

I'm surprised Catherine's designers charge her anything for their clothes. They receive massive publicity when she's photographed wearing them.

The Royal family pay for everything they use in order not to find themselves in the minefield Keir Starmer found himself in, when he accepted free clothes for himself and his wife.

They get given stuff by foreign visiters and the like. But when it comes to their day to day supplies, whether personal or household they pay the asking price.

I admit I love fabulous clothes.
I have no truly "fabulous" clothes myself but if ever you look at them they are so beautifully cut, nicely sewn, unbelievable materials...

If she is wearing British designs that's a great advert for them and good for sales/exports.

My daughter was a director of a company that has supplies clothes for Kate, Zara and Autumn Phillips etc.

They all pay full price and once in the press sales go crazy.

They get requests for a selection then go to KP and hope for the best.

It’s great the Royals are ambassadors for British brands.

I'm surprised Catherine's designers charge her anything for their clothes. They receive massive publicity when she's photographed wearing them.

To set the record straight, this is what AI says:

Kate did not spend £1 million on clothes in a single year, though it is widely estimated that her initial, foundational royal wardrobe following her 2011 wedding cost around that amount

Annual estimates indicate she typically spends between £100,000 and £190,000 on new clothing and accessories in high-profile years.

Her wardrobe costs are categorized as follows:The Costliest Years:
In 2022, she wore new clothing valued at roughly £176,000 across dozens of engagements.Mixed Spending:
Some periods, such as early 2025, saw spending figures drop to around £70,000 .

Funding: These wardrobe costs are covered by the private funds of the Prince of Wales, derived from the profits of the Duchy of Cornwall estate.High & Low Mix: To manage the overall cost of her wardrobe, she frequently rewears outfits and mixes high-end designer labels with affordable, high-street brands.

One million pounds in clothes - oh wow !
Changing universities was a good move !

Worn it before, not worn before it, sorry.

To be fair, mumofmadboys she does. That bright yellow number she wore at Ascot that everybody was talking about was on its third public outing, she’d worn before it at Wimbledon and on a royal tour of Jamaica. She also wears high street fashion quite often.

It would help if the media didn't descibe Catherine's clothes in such ridiculous detail. She always looks marvellous. I wish she would rewear the clothes she has like the rest of us do.

Toula

If you ask AI how much you earn in order to pay £12m in tax, computer says you earn between £26-£27m pa. King pays £12.9 million in tax 24/25. PoW paid £7.76m for same year. Kate got told off once for spending £1m in one day on clothes. Sums just don't add up, and I am not an accountant.

Can you evidence that the Princess of Wales was berated for spending 1million on clothes?

I assume you have access to a special AI that has access to the King's confidential financial records. AI can only tell you how much income accounts for how much tax if it knows the source of all your funds, the various schemes it ualifies for, what allowances he gets etc etc.

I would imagine the AI you spoke to just did an extended PAYE calculation.

I've told HMRC there's no need for me to faff around online with that self-assessment tax calculator thingy.

Just ask AI, which knows everything about my finances.