LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Royals

2/2/2014

The monarch business is not what it was, news from Britain confirms. Bumptious commoners in a parliamentary committee are making dreadful comments about the royal finances.

Last week, blighters took the queen to task for overspending. A report said Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle, palaces she occupies but the nation’s owns, are in disrepair.

The boiler in Buckingham Palace hasn’t been changed in 60 years. Buckets catch leaks from the roof in a room that houses priceless artworks.

Yet the royal family spent $74.5 million in 2012-13, $3.8 million over budget. It’s apparently a case of too many courtiers, and not enough good financial advisers. The rainy day reserve is a mere $1.7 million.

Members of parliament want further savings, even suggesting that more tourists be allowed into Buckingham Palace. Perhaps the gum chewers in shorts will trip over the rain buckets.

Queen Elizabeth is immensely wealthy in her own right and owns her own residences, including Balmoral Castle in Scotland. She got a “sovereign grant” of $51.5 million last year that will go up this year, so in a sense she is on the dole. But whatever sort of public housing you live in, it is important to keep up maintenance.

Still, the queen is not like anyone else on public support. The royal family attracts millions of visitors to Britain and makes tons of money for the treasury, giving excellent value to taxpayers. God save the queen from bean counters.