Estimates put the cost of King Charles’s coronation at between £50 million and £100 million ($63–125 million).
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LONDON – All eyes of the world will be on the UK this weekend as King Charles III is crowned at Westminster Abbey in a British display of pomp and pageantry.
The coronation, which will be officiated by the Archbishop of Canterbury on Saturday 6 May, will begin three days of celebrations in London and across the UK, culminating with a public holiday on 8 May.
The service – the first of its kind in 70 years – is largely ceremonial, following the 74-year-old king’s official accession to the throne on September 8, 2022. Death of Queen Elizabeth II.
But while hundreds of millions of people are expected to observe the historic occasion, it comes against a challenging economic backdrop for the UK, raising many questions over the legitimacy of the event as the country faces its worst living crisis in a generation. confronts.
How much will the coronation cost?
Buckingham Palace did not provide an exact figure for the cost of the coronation, nor has it responded to CNBC’s request for comment.
However, King Charles himself is said to have demanded more scaled-back celebrationa “smaller,” with a “smaller, less expensive and more representative” ceremony—part of his wider plans for a reduced the monarchy.
A member of the Royal Household works for Britain’s King Charles III at Frogmore Workshop in Windsor, west of London, ahead of the coronation of Britain’s King Charles III and Britain’s Camilla, Queen Consort, on April 21, 2023. May 6th.
Andrew Mathews | AFP | Getty Images
For example, the Westminster Abbey ceremony will be attended by around 2,000 VIP guests – about a quarter of the number present at the late Queen’s coronation – and the process will last about an hour instead of several hours.
however, the cost of weekend action – which includes a “king’s procession” and a star-studded concert at Windsor Gardens – is expected to run between £50 million and £100 million ($63-125 million), according to Estimate was quoted by the BBC which said it was not from an official source.
Florist Shane Connolly stands next to flowers, some of which will be used at Westminster Abbey for the coronation of King Charles and Camilla, Queen Consort, on May 4, 2023 in London, Britain.
Yui Mok | reuters
This is potentially over £50 million in today’s money – then £1.5 million Spent in 1953 when the queen assumed the throne.
That’s up from the equivalent £24.8 million – then £450,000 – Spent on the coronation of George VI in 1937.
Who pays for the event?
Like most public events, the occasion is funded by the UK government and ultimately, the British taxpayer with Buckingham Palace also contributing an undisclosed portion.
This has left some Brits dissatisfied, with 51% saying the coronation should not be funded by the government, according to a recent YouGov PollWhile 18% were undecided.
Meanwhile, the public holiday called to mark the event on May 8 is expected to hit the UK economy further. £1.36 billion In lost productivity.
Mounted police officers patrol ahead of the coronation of Britain’s King Charles and Camilla, Queen Consort, in London, Britain, May 2, 2023.
Maja Smijkowska | reuters
Currently, the UK gross domestic product (GDP) stands at around down 0.6% This is the level at the end of 2019, and it is the only G-7 economy that has not recovered from the Covid-induced recession. Meanwhile, inflation remains extremely high, with headline rates rising 10.1% p.a. In March, and food and beverage prices rising at the fastest pace in 45 years.
The government, for its part, however, insists that the opportunity will bring in millions for businesses, especially in the retail, tourism and hospitality sectors. By some estimates, retail sales generally exceed about 15% per day on public holidays.
The coronation comes as Britain’s economy remains in recession and many Britons struggle with daily expenses amid the country’s cost-of-living crisis.
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UK Hospitality, a trade association for the hospitality industry, said the king’s coronation could bring £350 million Sector boost. It said that, combined with two more May bank holidays in the UK as well as the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool on 13 May, could result in a total boost of £1 billion.
— CNBC’s Gail LeGrand contributed to this report.
