Queen Elizabeth costs each UK taxpayer 62 pence a year, with the overall cost of running the royal family increasing above the rate of inflation, Buckingham Palace said today.The Royal Public Finances report said the Queen’s family and household spending was £37.4 million last year, a 4.2 per cent increase from the previous year, costing the taxpayer an extra 1 pence more. The Queen’s accountants said the expenditure figure represented a decrease in real terms of 2.5 per cent since 2001.‘‘The reduction in the amount of Head of State expenditure reflects the continuous attention the Royal Household pays to obtaining the best value for money in all areas of expenditure,’’ said Alan Reid, Keeper of the Privy Purse.The report showed the bulk of the increase had come from travel costs, an issue critics have repeatedly highlighted.The highest travel expenses were incurred by Prince Charles and his wife the Duchess of Cornwall.Their trip to Egypt and the Middle East in March amounted to £304,000 while their visit to the United States last November cost £280,186.However a staff ‘‘reconnaissance visit’’ before the US trip cost an additional £45,000 compared to £15,000 spent before the Queen’s state visit to Australia.In addition the Royal Train, which incurs annual maintenance costs, was used 14 times, down from 19 in 2004-2005. Other royal costs involved dealing with inquiries under the Freedom of Information Act and from increased security vetting brought on after repeated attempts by the media to infiltrate Buckingham Palace.The death of Princess Diana in a Paris car crash in 1997 marked a turning point in public opinion and led to attacks on the monarchy’s wealth and demands that it become more open and accountable.Shortly afterwards, the Queen agreed to scrap her beloved royal yacht Britannia rather than ask the public to pay £60 million for a replacement.The figures come after Prince Charles’s office said on Monday his private income from the Duchy of Cornwall had risen by 6 per cent to £14 million helped by investments and rent rises on his country estates.
