THE BRITISH MONARCHY must be feeling the cold.
The Queen’s request for a poverty grant towards her heating costs was refused for fear of a public backlash, the Independent reports.
A senior royal aide wrote to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in 2004 to check if the Queen would be eligible for the grant.
The aide said that the cost of utilities at the monarch’s residences had reached £1m a year and were no “untenable”, and said that the £15m annually given by the government to the palaces was inadequate for covering costs.
The Independent made a Freedom of Information request which returned papers showing that the royal request was turned down. Officials said that the payments were to help low-income families and were intended to pay for heating schools, hospitals and projects overseen by housing authorities.
The message sent from the department to the Queen’s household added: “I also feel a bit uneasy about the probable adverse press coverage if the palace were given a grant at the expense of say a hospital. Sorry this doesn’t sound more positive.”
The Queen’s officials also requested permission to change the gas and oil provider for the palaces in order to cut costs. Although initially concerned about EU contracting rules, the palaces were allowed to switch.
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