TOdry the tears, removed the barriers, the heads of state left for the last farewell to Queen Elizabeththe attention of the British has inevitably shifted to costs of the whole Operation London Bridge. How much has the organization of funerals influenced the state coffers?
Buckingham Palace refuses to disclose the cost of the funeral
Elizabeth II’s is referred to as the most solemn state funeral ever organized in the history of the British monarchyand the British media speculate by citing figures ranging from ten million pounds to six billion and up. Diana’s, in 1997, had cost just five million. But who pays for the greeting to Queen Elizabeth? For now at court not they seem intent on disclosing the costs.
The safety of the guests weighs on the government’s coffers
Preparations, logistic organization e Security costs of a state funeral are usually borne by the British government. Ten thousand policemen scattered on the streets of the capital, as many agents assigned to the hundreds of heads of state who arrived in London cost millions. An example? In 2019, Donald Trump’s visit alone cost more than three million pounds in security spending by the then US president.
Queen Elizabeth had saved up for her funeral
For the past 30 years, the provident queen had thought of it herself, putting aside the gods personal funds to be allocated to the cost of her funeral and that of her husband Filippo, which took place rather quietly in April 2021, in times of pandemic. The sovereign had also done so for the funeral of the Queen Mother, in 2002, which cost almost six million pounds and partly financed by the monarch’s coffers.
A moment from Queen Elizabeth’s state funeral, September 19, 2022 (Getty Images)
In times of economic crisis, the subjects demand transparency
In times of austerity, and worried about the effect on the economy of the closure of offices and shops in the period of national mourning (the government expects a loss of over £ 1.36 billion), the British expect to be insured by Buckingham Palace on a substantial contribution from the Royal Family.
One more thought for King Charles who, after the recent scandals on cash exchanges received in unclear situations from his sheikh friends, he expects to soon have to justify his every expense as a monarch in detail.
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