to wonder who is paying for the celebrations for the Queens Jubilee???

[ssd]

just seen on the news she is having 500 horses flown in from around the world

and thats just for starters

with all the childrens centres closing and the whole country struggling, who the hell pays for this????

the extravagence is mind boggling and we are all expected to be pleased for her

jesus bloody wept

Lifehope: if there was a demand for a referendum, I'd be the first to agree with you about cost. But when there is no demand, it would be just a waste.
I looked on the epetition website - there are abolition petitions, but none breaks even the 1,000 vote level. If there is insufficient support to reach even 1% of that needed for a Parliamentary debate, there certainly isn't enough to warrant a referendum. The alternative vote one cost about £80million.

I think the Jubilee celebrations and the Olympics next year will bring a massive boost to the economy. Better bloody had do anyway, God help us if they don't.

A diamond jubilee is pretty much a once in a lifetime /century event though isn't it? I certainly think it's worth celebrating - a bit like the millennium.

I'm looking forward to it

If we didn't have these things, people would be moaning about how other countries' celebrations are so much better than ours.

Lifehope11 The Crown estates are the property of the Crown - not the government, and is run by an independant body - the Crown Estates Commissioners. If we become a republic, they revert to being owned by the ex-royal family, unless the state decides to confiscate them.

Interestingly, civil servants work for the Crown, not the State. They support the Government of the day but don't actually work for them.

Yes, between us, the tax payer, and the Queen herself, I'm sure we'll come to some arrangement.

Just remind me where her money actually came from in the first place?

Once in a lifetime - if only! Jubilee the year before I was born, another ten years ago, three royal weddings in my lifetime, we had to pay when one of her spare castles got burnt down..... there's always some bloody thing!

Bearskinwoolies: 'The Crown Estate is not the personal property of the Monarch'(www.royal.gov.uk). So it will not revert to the Queen's ownership as it was not hers in the first place.

EdithWeston: I take your point about epetitions..... however the numbers on these petitions do not necessarily reflect the amount of popular support. But I agree that those who feel strongly about any issue should make use of the petitions/lobby their MPs etc.

Anyway, this post is about the amount of money being spent on the Jubilee - much of it will be covered by the taxpayer (security costs will be paid by us regardless). Many people who may otherwise support the monarchy will be unhappy about the costs of all this. To be honest if I was a monarchist I would want to scale it down to avoid any public ill feeling which might rebound on monarchy's standing in the long term.

Lifehope: you're right about epetitions being hit and miss, but now they exist, using one to get a debate in the House about a referendum would be the obvious way to take the issue forward. We don't agree about strength of feeling on this; I do not expect to see much support for a referendum, let alone any chance of a popular vote being for abolition.