Prince William is undertaking a four-day tour of Cape Town to celebrate the Earthshot Prize.
During his solo visit to South Africa, the Prince of Wales has conducted several engagements and environmental initiatives and events as part of 'Earthshot Week'. His tour in the Commonwealth nation concludes on Wednesday evening with the presentation of the Earthshot Prize.
King Charles and Queen Camilla wrapped up their biggest royal tour since taking the throne last month, with a bumper visit to Australia and Samoa covering more than 35 official engagements.
But while the tour has been viewed largely as a success, it has raised the question that has often been asked over the years: is it right for the taxpayer to fund tours of this nature?
Royal tours are funded by the Sovereign Grant, which is a yearly taxpayer-funded settlement via the Treasury. The Sovereign Grant — which, between 2022 and 2023, was worth £86.3million — is used mostly to fund the expenses of official royal duties, such as the tour.
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The cost of the King's royal tour has not been made public yet, but the sheer number of personnel involved, travel, security and hospitality has estimates well over the £1million mark.
This will all be funded by the Sovereign Grant, which is assigned by the Treasury each year based on profits coming in from the Crown Estate — a property business owned by the monarchy.
The vast majority is spent on the upkeep of properties and staff costs.
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