Public funding of the royal family should be optional

[FuckinghamPalace]

Not sure if this has been duscussed before but…

What if the tax payer could opt out of funding the royal family? And opt in if they want to contribute?

It should be optional

Why not?

How much do they cost?

not the point, even if it is 1 pence per year per person, why is it not optional?

The total Sovereign Grant for 2022-23, amounted to £86.3 million (2021-22: £86.3 million), which is made up of a core grant of £51.8 million which funds official travel, property maintenance and the operating costs of The Sovereign's household. The core grant equates to 77p per person in the UK.

Think it would cost more to administer an opt out system.

Doesn't work as everyone benefits equally from the income they generate. It'd be easier to make things like contributions to schooling and council parks work optional based on use/interest than something as nationally beneficial as the Royal family.

Well paying tax isn’t optional. Id say at 77p a year they’re pretty good value for money

still not the point

not the point

I hate absolutely everything about the Royal Family and would happily see them gone tomorrow but in the current set up we have, we can't pick and choose what our taxes go towards, we have a government that allocated funds to things that they think benefit the country as a whole. Otherwise you'd have people saying they don't have kids so don't want to fund child benefit/don't drive so don't want to pay towards the roads etc.

😂

What is “nationally beneficial” about the royal family?

Slippery slope, OP. Then you’d have people saying they didn’t want to fund new warships or benefits for the unemployed or all the many other things that some people think are a good thing and some people don’t.

If that was the case then it would cost more in admin to arrange "opting out" than the contributions 😂 of course it matters.

If we didn't have a Royal Family, then we would be funding a President. That would cost more, especially if they are redecorating the stately home every few years when we get a new one.

They provide us with a mutual subject of conversation!

You could argue that they provide a uniting influence above politics with the never ending culture wars/lying/free wheeling....

The former is tongue-in-cheek, the latter is a serious point.

Okayyyyyy……so we all opt out, monarchy gone. Lose billions in tourism revenue ….

im not sure what your point is when you just answer not the point

YABU.

not the point.

😆

You are feing bar too bucking sensifle hedda.

A slippery slope indeed.

In my opinion, they are billionaires with more than enough money (much of which is hidden in offshore tax havens) to look after themselves. The royal family are living in wealth and luxury while their 'subjects' are literally starving and freezing to death or living in abject poverty on minimum wage and foodbank handouts. They don't 'generate wealth for this country through tourism', that is an actual, provable lie. The royal family are an affront to the population and it's time to stop funding their extravagant lifestyles altogether.

I dont think they cost anything. The grant is out of their own income and they hand the rest over to the treasury.

I know that is not the point - the point is you can't choose which taxes to opt in and out of

1. Us not paying for them will not stop tourism. Tourists don’t care or even think where their money comes from. The don’t come expecting to see one of the RF. They come to visit the buildings, feel the history and all the other stuff people visit capital cities for.
2. The costings presented don’t take into account the hidden costs - police, travel, banquets, weddings to name a few. We pay extra for that.
3. There is no need for the public purse to fund multiple properties, and definitely not for anyone other than the reigning head.

There’s no need to end the Royal Family, they just need to pay their own way.

I think there’s worse wealthy people to take a dig at. Yes they were born into weath but they’re constantly having to prove their value, these days more than ever . How do you put a value on the diplomacy, soft skills, charity, awareness they bring

YANBU

Opting out of your 77p would also require opting out of the benefits they bring. The tourist $$$ and the diplomatic skills that the late QEII brought to the role. Charles does his fair share of that too.

How would you manage that? It would probably cost you money.