UK Royal Property Arrangements Detailed in Spending Watchdog Report
By Michael Holden
Key Findings from the National Audit Office Report
LONDON, June 5 (Reuters) - King Charles' disgraced younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor held leases for 10 properties, three of which he sublet, while the monarch pays rent for the former prince's daughters' palace homes, a report by the UK's spending watchdog said.
In the most detailed review ever of royal property arrangements, the National Audit Office (NAO) report on Friday showed some leases were based on commercial valuations, while for others, senior figures paid no rent or negligible amounts for their properties.
The watchdog carried out its analysis after parliament's Public Accounts Committee said last December it would hold an inquiry into the issue amid questions about the lease Mountbatten-Windsor held for the Royal Lodge mansion on the king's Windsor estate.
Charles has since forced his brother to move out of his home and stripped him of all his titles over his ties to the late U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The issue has been seized on by critics of the monarchy, who increasingly question their wealth.
"We hope that the findings will help correct, clarify or contextualise a number of points regarding royal properties," a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said.
Mountbatten-Windsor's Property Leases
MOUNTBATTEN-WINDSOR
Analysis of Lease Agreements
The NAO said it had examined the property agreements the family had with the Royal Household and with the Crown Estate, a vast property portfolio belonging to the monarchy but which is independently run with all its profits going to the Treasury.
The spending watchdog offered no opinion on whether the deals represented good value for money for taxpayers.
Royal Lodge Lease Details
Under a deal struck in 2003, Mountbatten-Windsor obtained a 75-year lease for Royal Lodge in return for a 1 million pound ($1.3 million) up front payment and a commitment to perform £7.5 million in renovations, which he duly carried out.
Thereafter, he paid a "peppercorn rent" - effectively nothing - for the mansion and the eight cottages on its 40-hectare (100-acre) estate. He sublet and kept the rent for three of the cottages, which only became unoccupied in April.
Neither the NAO nor the Crown Estate, an independent commercial business, had details on that income.
Sunninghill Park Lease
Mountbatten-Windsor paid £12,922 a year for another property, Sunninghill Park in Windsor, which was used by a member of his staff. That lease will end in July next year.
A spokesperson for The Crown Estate said leases with members of the royal family were "in line with independent, professional advice and open market valuations".
King's Financial Support for Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie
KING PAYS FOR BEATRICE AND EUGENIE
Official Residences and Rent Arrangements
The NAO report also showed that the Royal Household provided seven official residences at Kensington Palace and St James's Palace at no charge for royals who carried out public duties, such as heir Prince William and the king's sister Princess Anne, in a long-standing deal in return for their official work.
Three 'non-working' royals - Mountbatten-Windsor's daughters, Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice, and the Duke of Kent, the king's first cousin once removed - paid a rent set at 60% of the open market to reflect the fact only a limited number of people would be able to live in such premises for security reasons.
Privy Purse Payments and Valuation Issues
However, the NAO found that the king was paying their rents out of the "Privy Purse", the sovereign's private finances, and that the rents set had not always matched the 60% valuation.
Buckingham Palace said residences had to be filled "depending on their location, tenants and purpose".
Other Notable Royal Property Arrangements
Prince William and Kate's Rental Agreements
Among its other findings, the NAO said William and his wife Kate were paying £307,200 per year to the Crown Estate in rent for their new home Forest Lodge, along with £19,800 a year for a staff property.
While the royals paid for internal refurbishment, the Crown Estate had paid £400,000 for repairs before they moved in.
Prince Edward's Lease on Bagshot Park
Prince Edward, the king's youngest brother, had paid a £5 million premium in 2007 along with £1.38 million for renovations for a 150-year lease on Bagshot Park - a mansion to the west of London with 21 hectares of grounds.
He paid a peppercorn rent and was also able to sublet properties on the estate, the report said.
Scope and Limitations of the NAO Report
Estates Not Covered
While detailed, the NAO report did not look at properties owned by the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall, large estates which provide income directly to the king and Prince William, nor the king's private estates such as Sandringham, in eastern England, or Balmoral Castle in Scotland.
($1 = 0.7448 pounds)
(Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
