Royal Mint, National Debt by Norman Baker

[BoxingHare]

This book was published in November, a follow up from his book And What Do You Do. It does a deeper dive into the finances of the Royal family.

I've asked my library if they could stock it, and am interested in any one else's opinions if you've read it or are reading it.

Royal Mint, National Debt - The Guardian Bookshop https://share.google/zf83FwYnxHJRYQ619

This is the description of the book from the Guardian Bookshop website:

In his irreverent and uncompromising bestseller... And What Do You Do?, former Minister of State and Privy Counsellor Norman Baker laid bare what the British royal family didn't want us to know, namely its extravagant use of public money and general bad behaviour.

This sensational sequel goes even deeper inits analysis of royal finances, examining where the money comes from, how it isused and what has changed with the arrival of a new king.

Amongst many other things, it reveals how a family that was effectively bankrupt in 1760 is now one of the richest in the country; how they lobby governments and the media to maximise their profits from the public purse; and how they take advantage of a uniquely beneficial tax and legislative regime.

Packed with details on the acceptance of dodgy donations; the appropriation of official gifts for personal use; and the exploitation of public bodies including the NHS, churches and charities, who are charged punitive rates for the use of Duchy-controlled land, this eye-opening expose also includes a chapter on Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and his money-making endeavours, including his friendships with convicted fraudsters, paedophiles and spies.

Pulling no punches, this is the book the royal family really don't want you to read.

@BoxingHare

Thank you. I want to read it. I've obviously read his 'And what do you Do' more than once. It should be required reading for all Royalists

DH gets me my books, I'm sending him off for it.

My DH is a ⭐
He's just got it for me, I think he feels a bit guilty about his Christmas presents! It's on my EReader so I'll be getting stuck in!

Not sure I will actually read it but it sounds very interesting. Would love an update of any tasty morsels anybody wants to share.

Fantastic! I hope the library also gets stuck in and orders it - I hate paying for hardbacks! (And the Kindle price isn't far off that, either, so good for your husband!)

I don't think this is going to be very good for my blood pressure.
This is only page two of the preface!

One interesting fact to come out early on.

Queen Victoria pleaded poverty to the government via her husband Albert saying she needed more money to perform her duties
More money was secured but this money was then used to buy Balmoral and Sandringham, not to carry out her duties. They are now described as private properties but should they actually belong to the state.
I'll shut up now!

I do think the RF believe they deserve all this because they have given up what might otherwise be fully productive lives in whatever industry they might have gone into.

They get all this wealth and in exchange they travel about the country, and the world, doing the handshakes and the schmoozing, and call it duty.

Wow! This is why I never finished his first book - I was permanently enraged with what they are, and have been for a long time, getting away with.

She also purchased Osborne House on the Isle of Wight because it was more difficult for anyone to get to and they could be left alone there, out of sight.

Victoria came in for a huge amount of criticism during her reign, partly because she wasn't visible and seemed to have "retired" after Albert died. She became a professional grieving widow for the rest of her life.

Pretty much the whole of "And what do you do?" was a tasty morsel!

There'd be no royalists left if that book was required reading

I'd like to think you're right, but it's going to be hard to wipe out centuries of very clever brainwashing and propaganda. The press are still shoving it down our necks at every opportunity, although admittedly their attempts are looking ever more feable and desperate.

Entitled is a good read too, and shows Sarah Ferguson in a very bad light!

Entitled is gobsmacking.

I have read quite a few pages of this book now but have to put it down for my sanity, for now.

Their security and how much it costs has absolutely blown my mind.
(In 2017 it was revealed that 47 police officers in the royal protection group were paid in excess of £100,000. There are 500 in the group and we're talking NI, pension, overtime and travel costs too. That was NINE years ago!)

As has QE2's funeral blown my mind, the coronation cost and comparisons with all the other European royal houses.

Just typing that means I am sure you understand why I have had to put the book down for now!

500?????????

Good grief. Has that been slimmed down in the last nine years?

The problem is who actually knows? It needs people the likes of Baker and Lownie to spend years of their lives to investigate it all - and Baker spends his time going into the hazy finances and how much everything might really cost.

I know the powers that be like to say it only costs each of us a couple of quid, but I'd bet the total of those numerous amounts on those costs being massaged to not include everything, or anywhere near everything.

Yes I have mentioned this in the past . Note that Albert , rather like Philip Mountbatten, was impoverished but became rich after marrying in to the royals . His money came directly from the tax payer , just as Philip’s did .

I’ve said this before too but the line the current lot of grifters descend from ( Saxe Coburg Gotha )were once 65 th in line to the throne ! Imagine a line of 65 people being skipped over next time the PR tries the ‘direct 1000 year line’ propaganda .

( all the people with a much closer claim were Catholic hence how we got to the obscure German princeling who struck it rich)

However! William will be the first direct descendent of the Stuarts to rule over us.

He's descended from one of Charles 2's illegitimate children via his mum.

Well if we are including illegitimate children that’s a whole other question!

I understand, I could only read And what do you do in short bursts because it made me so angry and sad. The chapter about how the Windsors treated their disabled relatives made me cry

Saw this thread and bought it today. I'm 1/4 of the way through - it's all just as terrible as you'd expect but the author lays out the specific journey to how we've got in this mess and how the system is currently 'working' (or rather 'being made to work for the royals'). Example after example showing that when costs happen assets are state owned, but when the same assets generate money, that should go to royals personally.

It also makes clear that the 'Crown Estate' is state owned and should be renamed the 'National Estate', but Charles and William often imply that it's a 'private estate' (which it definetely isn't) and they use this to trick the public into thinking that profit from the 'Crown Estate' being shared between them and the Treasury is the Royals doing us a favour by giving back to the government - it's not theirs, the name just misleads people. More PR magic to trick the gullible and uninformed. How they get money from this and the Sovereign grant is not justifiable in any way.

Santa brought 'Royal Mint, National Debt' for me and I'm very grateful although I'm not sure I can say the same for my blood pressure 😡

She also purchased Osborne House on the Isle of Wight because it was more difficult for anyone to get to and they could be left alone there, out of sight.

I too was struck by the purchases of Sandringham and Balmoral having been made from a Civil List increased in response to Albert's bleats. Turns out Osborne House was similarly funded.

In light of this they are all state properties IMO.

More recently it's all very reminiscent of the ghastly Phil bleating away about having to move to smaller properties and give up his Polo in the 60's and bang up to date we find surpluses from the Sovereign Grant are assigned to a reserve fund rather than returned to the Treasury and have in recent times underwritten royal knees-ups like the Jubilee and Coronation 😡

How they get money from this and the Sovereign grant is not justifiable in any way.

The entirely arbitrary and unexplained very recent linking of never reducing royal funding to the profits from a state asset really bother me.

I'm also aghast at May's government simply acquiescing to an entirely unexplained estimate of £369m to refurbish BP et al when previous assessments had placed the sums required at some £55m and well within the level of then current funding.

They seem to just keep moving around and every property needs renovating, so that at the end they'll have all these lovely refurbished homes to choose from!

See alleged 'royal pariah' AMW allegedly moving into another rundown hovel they couldn't be arsed to keep up to scratch...