Prince Charles seems to be on a hiring spree even as the British Queen is forced to cut back on staff and official duties in the wake of the recession.
According to the Daily Express, the Prince of Wales has weathered the recession so well he is hiring extra housekeepers, valets and gardeners, bumping staff numbers up to 125 compared to 94 five years ago.
The king-in-waiting’s personal household, which includes butlers and servants, has risen from 36 to 54. The average salary at Clarence House is £49,835 compared to just £33,221 at Buckingham Palace. The Duchy of Cornwall was created in 1337 to provide an income for the Prince of Wales. Surplus estate revenues, which are passed to Prince Charles, have risen from £7.4 million to £16.5 million since 2000, the report said.
On the other hand, the Civil List for the Queen will remain frozen at £7.9 million for yet another year. It has not risen for 20 years.
The duchy has property and investments worth a £605 million. Prince Charles pays 40 per cent tax on his income but money spent on official duties is tax deductible. Spending on his official duties and charitable projects rose from £6.1 million in 2005 to £9.4 million in 2009.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry took a tumble from his horse before his defeat in a New York polo match against the world’s best known polo player, Argentina’s Nacho Figueras.
But it was all for a good cause, to benefit 400,000 children of an AIDS-ravaged African nation. The 25-year-old son of the late Princess Diana fell off his polo pony in the first half of the 3rd Annual Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic on Governor’s Island on Sunday.
But he had a smile on his face as he got up and continued the contest, which Figueras’ Black Watch team won 6-5 in overtime.