London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 23, 2025

As UK Faces Cost-Of-Living Crisis, Brits Question King's Lavish Coronation

As UK Faces Cost-Of-Living Crisis, Brits Question King's Lavish Coronation

The cost of the coronation has been kept under wraps and the total sum is unlikely to be revealed until after Saturday's event.
As the UK grapples with a cost-of-living crisis and widespread strikes over pay, some Britons are questioning why taxpayers have to foot the bill for King Charles III's lavish coronation on Saturday.

"They got the money, why are they taking it from me?" asks Delany Gordon, a 50-year-old building site manager.

The cost of the coronation has been kept under wraps and the total sum is unlikely to be revealed until after Saturday's event.

According to some estimates, the cost will be between 50 million pounds and 100 million pound ($63 million and $126 million) on top of the price of a large-scale security operation.

"I am spending 26p (0.33 US cents) on my lunch today," Gordon tells AFP, showing a bread roll that he just purchased in a north London supermarket.

Another Londoner, Eden Eawit, says she cuts costs by cooking only two days a week and eating sandwiches the rest of the time.

"We are not living the same life... People are struggling," the 38-year-old says. "Some people are not eating at all. It is very hard."

Others have turned to charitable organisations, such as The Trussell Trust, which operates a vast network of food banks across the country.

The NGO said it provided nearly three million emergency food parcels to people in difficulty between last April and March -- a 37 percent increase compared to the previous year.

'Slap in the face'

King Charles in December gave an undisclosed sum, donated in memory of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, to a charity helping people unable to pay fuel bills and personally donated another 1 million pound to food banks.

However, with the royal family sitting on a fortune, a recent survey indicated that many British people do not want the coronation to be funded by taxpayers.

An April YouGov poll said 51 percent of respondents believe the ceremony to crown Charles and Camilla should not be paid for by the government.

Buckingham Palace has said the "true figures" for the coronation "will be shared in due course".

But a spokesman said a national occasion like this "does attract huge global interest that more than repays the expenditure that goes with it".

The British Beer and Pub Association estimates the coronation will generate an extra 120 million pound for pubs across the country with the hospitality industry also expecting a significant boost.

Government minister Oliver Dowden has previously insisted the government and the king were "mindful of ensuring that there is value for the taxpayer" and there will not be "lavishness or excess".

Compared to the over 8,000 people attending the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, the ceremony for Charles III will be slimmed down to 2,300 guests.

Buckingham Palace has also said "efficiencies" were found in key areas, such as reusing many ceremonial elements rather than commissioning new ones.

But for activist Graham Smith, head of the anti-monarchy group Republic, the cost of the coronation is a "slap in the face for millions of people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis".

"The coronation is a celebration of hereditary power and priviledge, it has no place in modern society."
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×