The Royal Family spent at least £2million of public funds on private jets and helicopter trips in a year, it has been revealed.
The royals’ expenses included a flight to watch a rugby match which could have been made by train. The tons of CO2 equivalent pumped out could have provided enough electricity for 300 homes for a year, The Mirror reports.
King Charles only attended the Cop28 summit in Dubai last week, where he gave a wide-ranging speech on the importance of climate change, warning that the world is “dreadfully off track” on climate targets. But news of the Firm’s spending and emissions risks undermining the King’s efforts on a cause he has spent many years campaigning for. A climate charity has slammed the royals for using “incredibly wasteful” private jets.
Accounts for the Sovereign Grant Fund, which is the public purse of the Royal Family, showed a total of £3.9m was spent on travel in the year to the end of March 2023. The Royals splashed at least £1,045,336 on charter flights.
Some of the trips listed included the King and Queen flying between their UK homes, at a cost of thousands to the public purse. In March they took a chartered flight to Germany for their first official state visit since ascending the throne, amounting to £146,219.
Princess Anne’s flights from Brize Norton to Edinburgh and back, for the Scotland v Wales Six Nations rugby match, cost £19,815. A total of £51,108 went on private jets for her Platinum Jubilee trips to Australia.
Prince William and Princess Kate spent £48,034 on their trip to Boston for the Earthshot Prize. The couple caught scheduled flights, and the total sum includes earlier staff planning visits.
In the same year, the Royal Family spent a total of £1,020,297 on 179 helicopter journeys, taking their chopper and chartered flight bill to over £2million.
The Royal Family’s business travel used 1,615 tons of CO2 equivalent in the same year, equating to emissions from the annual electricity use of 314 homes or more than four million miles clocked up in an average petrol car.
Alethea Warrington, of climate charity Possible, said: “Private jets are incredibly wasteful, cause gigantic emissions – and should be banned. It is not acceptable for the Royals, who should set a good example, to fly around on them, particularly using public money.”
Buckingham Palace said: “Royal Travel seeks to find the best balance of safety, security, efficiency, and the need to minimise disruption for others when planning transport for members of the Royal Family. Sustainable aviation fuel is used whenever it is available.”
