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- An overview of the UK’s economic conditions and expenses of the royal family and the cost of the Queen’s funeral.
- What were the previous funeral expenses of the royal family?
Truss passing will be marked by a period of solemn ceremony, during which Truss will make no government announcements until after the cost of the Queen’s funeral. It comes at a time of unique flux for Britain, a country saddled with its worst economic outlook in years, a deepening energy crisis and increased inequality.
The queen, who at 96 was the U.K.’s longest-reigning monarch, died “peacefully” Thursday at Balmoral Castle, Scotland, hours after doctors expressed concern for her ailing health
The queen — whose 70-year reign spanned the aftermath of WWII, the winding down of Britain’s vast empire, the 2016 Brexit vote and a global pandemic — had come to symbolize a rare constant in a world of constant change. She is succeeded by her eldest son, who was proclaimed King Charles III hours after her death.
Truss enters 10 Downing Street at a time of unique flux for Britain, inheriting a country saddled with its worst economic outlook in years, a deepening energy crisis and increased inequality
Hours before the queen’s death, Truss began outlining her plans to combat the U.K.’s cost-of-living crisis, unveiling a broad stimulus package designed to help Brits with energy bills, which have soared following Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The U.K. central bank delivered its most significant rate hike in 27 years last month, raising the benchmark to 1.75%, in a bid to bring down inflation, which is currently the highest among G-7 nations at 10.1%. Investors had widely expected a further 50 basis point hike when the BoE next meets. Still, some now say it will be forced to lift rates higher and more quickly. The British pound has been downward over the past several months, hitting a 37-year low of $1.1469 on Wednesday.
The monarchy also faces ongoing criticism for being outdated and absorbing public finances. Indeed, the cost and ceremony of the queen’s funeral will not be lost on a country in the grips of a cost-of-living crisis.
Some of the key figures from the royal accounts for 2020-2021 are as follows: £86.3 million – The total taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant, made up of £51.8 million for the “core” funding and an extra £34.5 million for the reservicing of Buckingham Palace and £102.4 million – Official expenditure by the monarchy – a rise of £14.9 million or 17% from £87.5 million in 2020/2021.
Andrew Roberts, historian and professor of King’s College London, believed in this economic condition, “We are facing a massive cost-of-living crisis in the U.K., obviously, and what people want to see is the Royal Family reflecting that.
The Queen’s body will lie in state at Westminster Hall for four days so the public can pay respects. Her coffin will be accessible to the public for 23 hours per day before the funeral takes place at Westminster Abbey.
A total of 2,000 specially guests will attend the funeral in person, while millions will watch the proceedings on television
Buckingham Palace spent years preparing for the Queen’s death and had two separate arrangements planned before her passing. With the Queen dying at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, ‘Operation Unicorn’ will take place.
On 6 February 1952, the previous king, George VI, died unexpectedly in his sleep a few months after a lung operation, and Elizabeth was appointed as a Queen. He lay in state in Westminster Hall, with more than 300,000 people attending to pay their respects. Thousands of people lined the streets of London on the day of his funeral, and the roads were closed at 8 am.
The last time the nation came together to mourn the passing of a senior royal was for Prince Philip in April 2021, when the Duke of Edinburgh was laid to rest amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Queen Mother’s funeral at Westminster Abbey had 2,200 guests and included 35 members of the royal family, four former prime ministers, US first lady Laura Bush and Dame Vera Lynn.
Princess Diana’s funeral cost the equivalent of $11.8 million in 1997. The funeral for Queen Mother Elizabeth cost over 5 million pounds in 2002. England is currently in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis. Policing costs amounted to £4.3m, and the Queen Mother’s lying-in-state came to £825,000, according to a House of Commons research briefing paper. The Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral at Windsor Castle on Saturday is a much smaller affair in keeping with his wishes and the coronavirus protocols limiting the ceremony to 30 mourners. Diana, Princess of Wales’s funeral – a form of the ceremonial royal funeral – is estimated to have cost between £3 million and £5 million in 1997.
While her funeral will cost millions, the impact her passing has on the UK’s entire financial system is tremendously noteworthy.
The vast majority of businesses will close in the United Kingdom. The Premier League has postponed all of its games over the next three days, and the day of the funeral will be an official bank holiday for the whole of the UK. The new British currency, with King Charles III’s portrait, will have to be printed, and The bank of england will remove the Queen’s currency. the UK Government must also change stamps, passports, and police uniforms to reflect King Charles’ reign.
According to reports, the funeral and coronation each cost gross domestic product an estimated 6 billion pounds when it’s all said and done
The Queen’s funeral will take place at Westminster Abbey on Monday, September 19 at 11 am, the Earl Marshal, the Duke of Norfolk, has said. The Queen’s coffin, which is lying in the Ballroom at Balmoral Castle, will be taken by road to the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh on Sunday, September 11, on a six-hour journey by hearse.
A senior palace official said that the Queen will lie in state for “four clear days” in Westminster Hall from Wednesday, September 14. The new King has approved an order that the day of the Queen’s funeral will be a bank holiday.
After the funeral, the Queen’s coffin will travel to her final resting place, St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle. The chapel has been the setting for royal family occasions, including the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2018, Princess Eugenie’s wedding to Jack Brooksbank later that same year, and most recently, the funeral of the Queen’s late husband, Prince Philip, on 17 April 2021.
Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral will likely be the biggest in history. It will come with one of the most significant bills as well.
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