Royal accounts reveal £35m shortfall due to Covid as Sussexes pay for cottage costs

● Household ‘has no intention to ask for extra funding’

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have paid an undisclosed sum upfront for the rental and refurbishment of Frogmore Cottage – as royal accounts showed a potential £35 million shortfall due to Covid-19.

Critics had called for Harry and Meghan to pay back the £2.4m spent renovating their Windsor property after they stepped down as working royals for financial and personal freedom and moved to the US.

The couple’s reimbursement of the renovation costs had been announced, but as royal accounts were published yesterday a senior palace source said: “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have made a sub - stantial contribution to the sovereign grant that covers refurbishment and rental obligations for Frogmore Cottage.

“The reporting method for this contribution has yet to be determined and will have to be agreed by the National Audit Office before appearing in next year’s accounts.”

The couple were able to afford there payment after recently signing a lucrative Netflix deal rumoured to be worth more than £100m.

As the royal accounts were released, details emerged of a £15m shortfall which is expected over the next three years in money that supplements the sovereign grant, which funds the Queen and her household’s official expenses, due to Covid-19.

A £369m reser vicing pro - gramme to update the electrical cabling, plumbing and heating at Buckingham Palace over ten years was also expected to be £20m short.

Sir Michael Stevens, Keep -

er of the Privy Purse, said the Royal Household had no intention of asking for extra funding, but would “look to manage the impact through our own efforts and efficiencies”.

A pay freeze for royal staff was implemented in April and there is also a halt on recruitment, with only businesscritical posts being filled.

Accounts for the sovereign grant have shown the monarchy cost the taxpayer £69.4m during 2019-20 – an increase of £2.4 mon the previous financial year.

All major expenditure areas have increased, from payroll (up £1.2m to £24.4m) to travel (rising by £700,000 to £5.3m) to housekeeping and hospitality (which rose by £300,000 to £2.6m).

The sovereign grant increased slightly by £200,000 to £82.4m during 2019-20 – a core element of £49.4m that funds the Queen and her household, and an additional £33m to pay for the ongoing reservicing costs.

Sir Michael outlined the report, which covered the

12 months to 31 March, but looked ahead tot hep roblems that Covid-19 will pose to finances.

He said: “So in our forecasts we are now estimating that this reduced growth in the sovereign grant means the likely contribution from the sovereign grant to the reser vicing programme will be over £20m short of the agreed £369m tenyear budget.

“If we look at our core sovereign grant and the income that we generate to supplement the sovereign grant, both of which

support the official duties of the Queen.

“We are expecting a significant reduction in income from the Royal Collection Trust, due to the impact Covid-19 has had on their visitor numbers.

“This forms the bulk of a projected shortfall in income which we estimate will be around £5m per year for the next three years.”

He went on to say: “We have no intention of asking for extra funding.”

“We are expecting a significant reduction in income from the Royal Collection Trust, due to the impact Covid-19 has had on their visitor numbers.”

SIR MICHAEL STEVENS Keeper of the Privy Purse