King Charles warned he's 'sending the wrong message' over Frogmore Cottage
The property has sat vacant since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left in 2023
King Charles has been warned he is “sending the wrong message” by leaving Frogmore Cottage vacant, according to a property buying agent.
The king is trying to cut costs across the monarchy. However, the cottage has been empty since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left the property in 2023.
The news came as the royal family received public funding of £86.3 million for the fourth year in a row. Inflation, though, means that this figure has become less valuable in real terms. James Chalmers, Keeper of the Privy Purse, said that the royal household needs to be “disciplined and forward-looking in our allocation of funding.”
King Charles leaving Frogmore Cottage unoccupied “sends wrong message”
Robin Edwards, property buying agent at Curetons, told GB News, “Frogmore Cottage has become something of a symbol in the ongoing conversation around the royal family’s finances and whether they offer good value for money to the taxpayer.”
Leaving a royal residence empty does little to help the institution’s public image.
He explained that it sitting empty “raises awkward questions” when the monarchy is trying to modernise and cut other costs.
Recently, it was announced that the royal train, which dates back to Queen Victoria’s reign, will be decommissioned before 2027. This is due to high operating costs and major updates being required.
Edwards, meanwhile, continued: “From a property perspective, leaving a high-profile home like Frogmore Cottage unoccupied sends the wrong message. It’s not just about optics, though; it’s also about practicality,” he said.
Leaving it sitting vacant seems a massive missed opportunity.
Edwards warned if the empty property deteriorates, after undergoing a costly renovation recently, risks appearing ‘wasteful’.
He suggested that it’s not ideal timing given that many in the UK are struggling with the cost of living, adding it could affect the institution’s public image.
Royal train news proves divisive
The royal train is the last private, non-commercial train service in the UK. Famously, it was loved by the late Queen Elizabeth II. However, it’s reported that it costs £900,000 per year to operate it, perhaps prompting the decision to decommission it.
Not everything thinks doing so is a good idea, however.
Commentator Peter Hitchens expressed anger at the move, writing: “I think King Charles must be a secret petrolhead, much more like the dreaded, goggled maniac motorist Mr Toad than the gentle plant-loving nostalgist he seems to be at first sight. What else can explain his horrible, needless decision to scrap the royal train?
“The instruction saves almost no money, is poorly justified and is a brutal blow at the environment … Trains, as we shall see, are a million times greener than cars. And, as for helicopters and private jets, these things – which have survived the king’s cuts – are not green at all, even if they run on old bits of cheese and cooking oil.”
Chalmers, meanwhile, told The Guardian: “The royal train, of course, has been part of national life for many decades, loved and cared for by all those involved. But in moving forward, we must not be bound by the past.
“The time has come to bid the fondest of farewells as we seek to be disciplined and forward in our allocation of funding.”
Read more: King Charles’ Norfolk home Sandringham hit with surprise closure notice
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