Palace refurb

We don't need another bloomin' referendum, we just need politicians who can discuss important subjects without turning the debating chamber into a platform for their own ambition or to air their personal spite.

Oh Gawd! Not another referendum.

Sorry to repeat that. I must have pressed the send button when I was partway through.

The tone of some of the posts on this thread reminds me of the citizens of Paris gathered round the guillotine, avid to see aristocratic blood running in the gutters. You think the agreements of the past should be repudiated? OK, campaign to change the system legally, and without being personally insulting to a woman who has studied politics more thoroughly that any party leaders, been a calm advisor to God knows how many new Prime Ministers in her lifetime and kept her own council about what she thought of some of THEM.

How do you think the "democratic" leaders of the US and other great powers acquired the vast fortunes that enable them to stand for president and conduct the sophisticated campaigns that get them elected? It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a poor man to become head of state in a nation full of men and women who worship the almighty dollar.

The country needs houses for the people , if this money belongs to the country let's have a referendum, do we spend on a palace or social housing

Before George III, the monarch him or herself paid all the costs of government (making and maintaining law, raising an army, and so on, all the things that administering a nation involve) To raise the money, he/she received rents from property and projects, took possession of estates and property without heirs, and instituted tax collections.

On George III's accession, he changed this by surrendering the royal properties for a regular income, the payment of some debts, and the government of the day taking on the cost of running the country. In a way, he purchased an annuity for himself and his successors in exchange for handing over the means of raising and spending the nation's cash. The Crown Estate is neither the property of the crown nor the people. They are held and administered by an independent company and the profits handed over to the nation. Out of that the queen gets a Sovereign's Allowance.

In the 2015/2016 fiscal year, the Crown Estate had a £304.1 million net revenue profit. This DID NOT go to the queen, it went into the nation's bank account. Read a few facts

So now we have to agree that the stuff her ancestors nicked and built on the backs of ordinary working people is of course hers and we are just giving some of it back to her? How can they possibly be "her businesses" do you seriously think she has ever spent a day working at them? If someone gives me 40 mill I can confidently say that my family could live very comfortably and we would be willing to open things and shake hands with visiting heads of state.(And we might even manage to keep where we are living in a good state of repair)

Only one taxpayer will fund the Buckingham Palace repairs; The Queen. Read the facts
"In a tradition dating back to George III, the British monarch always surrenders the profits from their own businesses, called the Crown Estate, to the government of the day. The Crown Estate is mainly a collection of properties in London and extensive agricultural land across the country. The monarch was always given a small sum of this money back to cover the costs of state events, such as royal tours abroad.

In 2012, George Osborne reorganised this system, creating the Sovereign Grant. This effectively meant that The Queen paid an 85% tax on her income. She received just 15% of the profits from her own businesses, approximately £40 million, and was expected to fund the Royal Family’s work with it. This makes The Queen the most taxed person on earth.

The Buckingham Palace repairs will be funded by a temporary increase in the Sovereign Grant. Instead of paying 85% tax, The Queen will now pay 75% tax.

All that about Prince Charles being "a Man who takes his teddy bear everywhere with him, has his Valet iron the newspaper before he will read it, and takes his own toilet paper too." is a load of invented rubbish, you know!

I am with you Shanma Why do they turn up at disasters as though they are doing something to help? They lift a sand bag or two (for the photo opportunity) or shake the hand of some poor soul who has been flooded out of their home or whatever and then jump back into their chauffeur driven limo (or helicopter) and head back to one of their several luxurious homes. It's enough to make me want to puke.

She likes Windsor better anyway.

I don't think she should pay for the repairs , just move out and stay in Windsor

There is an online petition which has reached 70,000 in a few hours to get her to pay for her own repairs.

Go for it HootyMcOwlface, you are so right. The Queen has served her country well no question of that. Think some people believe The Crown is completely true. The comment about foreign aid was interesting, how much of that goes on self serving projects.

annodomini I have another one - President Trump.
Is that what you anti-royalists want then your own President? You think they will be cost effective, they won't be splashing the cash feathering their own nest? Ha! Dream on suckers.

It is a ridiculous situation in this day and age that we have this `Royal` family which grows ever bigger by the year who actually think they were appointed by God . She should pay for repairs to her home (or one of them) herself like the rest of her `subjects` do , or move into something smaller. The idea of a Royal family should have been abolished years ago !

I think it is a scandal. I really loathe when I see one of the Royal Family visiting People after a disaster, or a flood or something like that. They have no idea, clueless about how the average person manages. Doesn't matter how concerned Prince Charles looks ( For example), here is a Man who takes his teddy bear everywhere with him, has his Valet iron the newspaper before he will read it, and takes his own toilet paper too. Give me strength!!

Never seen it Merlotgran

And I haven't forgotten anything about the press going frantic

Comes of binge-watching The Crown on Netflix

they have both had affairs

Where is your proof?

Merlotgran, apart from beheading , untill Charles no monarch or heir has divorced. It's the way arranged marriages work, they have both had affairs, and with those number of homes and the number of rooms it is so easy to live apart but together. You have forgotten the press going frantic - at a time they didn't criticise - Phillip was away on tour for months, even over a Christmas ? Do you really believe he had no choice ? I think they have made a good job of their marriage , she puts the crown first and he accepts this

The press has fed us the story of the deep love between her and Phil, I believe it was an arranged marriage and try accepted this ,they have a damn good friendship.

They celebrated their 69th Wedding Anniversary today, Anniebach. Not bad for an 'arranged' marriage.

A damn good friendship is a necessary requirement of any long marriage.

I think the main problem here is the sensationalist way this is being reported. The newspapers are shouting £367 million!!! But this is spread over 10 years, less than £37 million per year. Contrast that to the £11.7 billion which the UK spent in foreign aid in 2014.

And those who say it should be given to the NHS instead should remember that the NHS's budget for 2015/16 was £116.4 billion. An extra £37 million would be an increase of less than one-third of one percent, which would have no significant impact on the current problems.

Contrast it to the money which the government used to bail out the banks - which has been estimated at £456 BILLION.

Estimates by the City of London suggest that tourists TO the UK spent more than £11.8 billion in 2014 (the last year for which figures are available). I know that they didn't all visit Buckingham Palace - but if just 1% of them didn't come because of our failure to maintain our historic monuments then the country would be £118 million per year worse off.

£367 million to repair such an historic building? It's a drop in the ocean. We should celebrate it not complain.

Turn it into a hotel for MP's, then they will not be able to claim millions in second home allowances. Her Majesty can live in Windsor Castle, she doesn' t need all those homes, and before you bite my head off, I did serve the Queen for nine years in the Army.

She did not have to take the job Ana, it was not compulsory , throne or tower .

understanding this family is not possible, they have never lived in the real world , we all hsve our opinions on what makes them tick , we will never know .

I think the queen learned at a very young age to stifle any emotion, her mother was a selfish woman, her father had a mental health problem , her grandmother had the big say in how the queen was trained! Think how screwed up her own children were .

The press has fed us the story of the deep love between her and Phil, I believe it was an arranged marriage and try accepted this ,they have a damn good friendship.

She believes she was appointed by God, she does publicly what is expected of her, she stashes the cash as those who went before her did, a safety net should the country turn republican

Anti-monarchists should pause and consider what can happen in a republic where an extremist can be elected as President. I remember Lord Ashdown (Paddy) expressing the opinion that the best argument against a republic in this country would, in two words, be "President Thatcher". I was persuaded!