It has been revealed that the Royal family spent an astonishing £1.7 million on food and drink last year.
Royal accounts, which are publically available, revealed the significant sum for the financial year of 2018-19. The monarchy’s spend on food falls under the ‘official hospitality and housekeeping’ umbrella, which totalled £2.3 million.
Much of the spend on food and drink is because of events held across the Royal Family’s property portfolio. The Master of the Household’s department hosted 240 receptions in the last year, as well as 158 lunches, nine garden parties and 75 dinners across Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, St James’s Palace and the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
The funds used come from the taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant, which also covers various other costs. Further interesting findings include that the monarchy spent £1.1 million on printing, postage and stationery, as well as £600,000 on cleaning and laundry, and a further £400,000 on wine and spirits.
During the 12-month period from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019, around 160,000 guests were entertained at Royal residences. Events that the Queen hosted in this time period included the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting opening ceremony in the Buckingham Palace ballroom in April and the state visit by the King of the Netherlands in October.
The cost of US President Donald Trump’s controversial state visit, which led to protests in the capital, will not be accounted for until next year’s financial reports are revealed, as the visit took place in June 2019.
Overall, the Royal family’s spend on official hospitality and housekeeping has stayed the same as the previous year, with them having also spent £2.3 million in this area during 2017-18. However, the amount does represent a slight increase in spending from the year 2016-17, which amounted to £2.2 million.
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