Andrew's Marsh Farm Move Funded by Taxpayers and Not King Charles, Says Expert
Despite Marsh Farm being a private property, taxpayers will be footing the bill for its upkeep, claims Republic CEO Graham Smith.
Time and again, the royal family has been forced to manage the fallout from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's scandals, but their efforts are never enough. Although King Charles has banished him to Marsh Farm, a modest 'shoe-box' sized property, fresh questions have emerged about who is paying for the relocation. Graham Smith, CEO of the anti-monarchy group Republic, claims that despite the home being private property, taxpayers will ultimately be paying for the upkeep of Mountbatten-Windsor's new residence.
As reported by The Mirror, the Sandringham estate, where Marsh Farm is located, is privately owned and does not form part of the Crown Estate, nor is it held by the Duchy of Lancaster. The Duchy of Lancaster is described as "a private estate held in trust for the Sovereign and their successors," meaning it is not the King's personal property but is held by the Crown. This is where matters become a little complicated. While the monarch receives his profits as the 'Privy Purse,' he cannot sell assets for private gain, and voluntarily pays income tax on surplus income not used for official duties. The income is used to cover expenses that are not covered by the taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant.
Sandringham and Balmoral are owned by Charles in a personal capacity rather than as head of state, meaning there is some truth to the claim that Mountbatten-Windsor would be living on 'private property.' However, Smith argued that the issue is not so straightforward. He explained, "It's a bit of both. I think we give them so much money that their whole lifestyle, the whole fact that they are as wealthy as they are, is due to huge public subsidies over generations. Arguably, if they weren't exempt from inheritance tax, they wouldn't have been able to keep Balmoral and Sandringham."
He added, "Technically, Sandringham is private property, unlike the Duchies, but the upkeep, the travel to and from, the security - a lot of it is a bit murky - but we know there is certainly a lot of public money being spent in that. It isn't like he bought some other house in some other part of the country." He stressed that Sandringham is indeed policed and staffed from public funding, and as a result, "[Andrew's] new arrangements will in one way or another still cost the UK taxpayer a lot of money."
Echoing Graham's belief, royal expert Afua Acheampong-Hagan said, "[Andrew] is going to be on that private Sandringham Estate, but it's still funded by the Crown [in some ways], and that Crown's wealth comes from the state." Taxpayer funds are allocated to the House of Windsor through the Sovereign Grant, which covers the maintenance of Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace. For those unversed, the King uses income from the Duchy of Lancaster to maintain privately owned estates like Sandringham and Balmoral, as well as to meet additional expenses, a system some believe reduces the overall burden on the Sovereign Grant.
