The Queen has seen the value of land and property from the Crown Estate plummet over the last six months due to the pandemic. The Monarchy receives 25 percent of the profits – through a Sovereign Grant – from her vast portfolio which includes London’s Regents Street, the Windsor Estate and retail parks across the country.
The Treasury has confirmed the Sovereign Grant will receive a cash injection to make up for the loss of income.
However, a poll of more than 3,000 Express.co.uk readers has found seven-out-of-ten people think the Treasury should not subsidise the financial loss.
The survey conducted on Thursday September 24 asked 3,336 Express.co.uk readers: “With Queen to receive millions, is Treasury right to prop up royals during crisis?”
A huge 77 percent (2,498) of readers thought it was not right for the Treasury to prop up the royals and voted no.
Just 22 percent (809) thought the Treasury was correct to stump up the cash and voted yes.
Meanwhile, one percent (29) remained unsure and said they did not know.
A number of Express.co.uk readers let their feelings known in the comments section.
One passionate user said: “This could not have come at a worse time.
“If the Royal Family truly want to remain as the monarchy of this country then they really should start looking at the people who support them and realise how difficult life has become for them.
“The Queen is extremely wealthy and should not be accepting handouts that could be better used helping ordinary people.”
A second reader said: “Surely they need to set an example, by ‘cutting their cloth’, like everyone else will be having to do.”
A third commented: “The Sovereign Grant gives them tens of millions to squander amongst themselves every year. No way they should get more!”
READ MORE: Coronavirus map LIVE: Israel makes huge lockdown changes in UK warning
The Treasury says revenue from the Crown Estate has totalled £2.8 billion over the past 10 years and helps to fund “vital public services”.
The Treasury added the 25 percent profit from the Estate, which goes into the Sovereign Grant, funds “official business of the Monarchy and does not provide a private income”.
A Buckingham Palace spokesman also said as well as supporting official royal duties, the Grant is also put towards maintaining the royal palaces and is “calculated on 15 percent of the income surplus of the Crown Estate”.
They added: “An additional 10 per cent was agreed to fund a ten-year re-servicing of Buckingham Palace.”
A Treasury spokeswoman said: “The revenue from The Crown Estate helps pay for our vital public services – over the last 10 years it has returned a total of £2.8 billion to the Exchequer.
“The Sovereign Grant funds the official business of the Monarchy, and does not provide a private income to any member of the Royal family.
“The formula ensures that the amount contributed to the Exchequer far exceeds the amount given to the Monarch – supporting public services like the NHS.”
