With his £1m royal allowance withdrawn last year, Prince Andrew faces questions over how he funds his £3m security and 30-bedroom Windsor mansion. ITV News Political Correspondent Carl Dinnen reports
Words by ITV News Producer Jamel Smith
Renewed allegations in Virginia Giuffre’s memoir, which link Prince Andrew to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, have deepened the royal’s ongoing crisis.
The scrutiny of his finances and his ability to continue living at the Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park has intensified in recent days.
The King cut Andrew’s £1 million annual royal allowance last year, leaving him with only a £20,000 naval pension as declared income.
Questions have arisen over how he pays for the upkeep of his 30-bedroom mansion and his estimated £3 million-a-year security bill.
ITV News explains what we know about Prince Andrew’s finances.
ITV News Political Editor Robert Peston look at whether the shifting public attitude against Andrew could become a problem for Downing Street
How can Prince Andrew afford to pay for the Royal Lodge?
Prince Andrew is under renewed pressure after a copy of the Royal Lodge lease, released on Tuesday, showed he has paid only a “peppercorn rent” for his Windsor mansion for more than 20 years.
Senior politicians and campaigners are questioning why the public may be missing out on potential revenue from the property.
What does the lease reveal?
The lease shows Andrew signed a 75-year agreement for Royal Lodge in 2003.
It reveals he paid £1 million for the lease and has since paid only “one peppercorn” in rent per year, “if demanded”.
He was also required to spend £7.5 million on refurbishments, completed in 2005, according to a National Audit Office report.
The small amount of rent helps explain how Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, have been able to live there without using royal funds.
It was previously thought that Andrew paid a “notional rent” of £260,000 per year in addition to the refurbishments.
The lease confirms that this rent only applied if the work was not completed, which was done in 2005.
Spread over 75 years, the £8.5 million initial outlay averages £113,000 a year, less than half the estimated market rent.
Why is Andrew’s private residence of public concern?
Andrew’s lease includes a clause requiring the Crown Estate, which oversees the royal family’s land and property holdings, to pay him around £558,000 if he gives up the property.
Profits from the Crown Estate go to the Treasury, raising concerns that the public could be missing out on potential revenue from the Royal Lodge due to Andrew’s peppercorn rent.
MPs on the Commons Treasury Committee and Public Accounts Committee may investigate how the Crown Estate has managed the lease.
But Downing Street said that according to the 2005 National Audit Office report, the public spending watchdog had not raised concerns about the Royal Lodge arrangements.
A No 10 spokesman said: “The National Audit Office reviewed the lease arrangements for Royal Lodge in 2005. And in its report, which was published at that time, concluded that the Crown Estate does not have any special procedures when negotiating agreements with the royal family.
“An independent evaluation concluded that the transaction with Prince Andrew and Royal Lodge was appropriate.”
Andrew and his family are entitled to live at Royal Lodge on the Windsor Estate until 2078.
The property was previously occupied by the Queen Mother, and Andrew moved in after her death.
What are politicians saying?
Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said Andrew should “take himself off to live in private” and stop relying on public funds.
“It’s about time Prince Andrew took himself off to live in private and make his own way in life,” he said
“He has disgraced himself, he has embarrassed the royal family time and again.
“I don’t see why the taxpayer, frankly, should continue to foot the bill at all. The public are sick of him.”
Liberal Democrat Cabinet Office spokesperson Lisa Smart said Andrew should “show contrition” by “returning every penny” of unpaid rent.
“Andrew has failed our King and Royal Family and betrayed the values of the British people,” she said.
“The longer this whole sorry saga goes on, the more his presence in public life is an insult and increasingly an embarrassment.
“He should show some contrition by returning every penny of rent that he’s not paid while disgracing his office.”
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Where is his money coming from?
While his cheap rent helps explain how Andrew has been able to afford Royal Lodge, questions still remain over how he covers his estimated £3 million-a-year security bill.
So where does his money come from?
Some sources estimate his net worth at around $5 million (£1.5 million), built through various investments.
He has maintained financial stability through international investments and business connections, enabling him to sustain a lavish lifestyle.
His private investments include commercial dealings with China and the Gulf States, as well as a now-suspended partnership with Dutch start-up Startupbootcamp through his company, Pitch@Palace.
He also earned money from the 2007 sale of his 12-bedroom Sunninghill Park home near Windsor Castle for £15 million, £3 million above the asking price.
The house was gifted to him by the late Queen Elizabeth II as a wedding present and was sold to Timor Kulibayev, son-in-law of the then-president of Kazakhstan.
The sale drew scrutiny for its inflated price and foreign connections, and the property remained vacant and deteriorating for more than a decade.
Nonetheless, the deal provided Andrew with his largest known cash infusion, which appears to have funded much of his later spending.
This is the Talking Royals – our weekly podcast about the royal family, with ITV News Royal Editor Chris Ship and Producer Lizzie Robinson.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.itv.com ’
