baldysblog.co.uk

I’m not quite sure what point Matthew Norman was trying to make in today’s Independent because he did seem to wander all over the place, you can judge for yourself: http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/matthew-norman/matthew-norman-a-prince-and-his-indulgent-public-1717971.html

I think the starting point was the “extra £3 million that the Prince of Wales cost the taxpayer last year simply because the Government wanted him to carry out a number of overseas visits on their behalf, which therefore seems reasonable that they should cough up for the expenses incurred.

When it Comes to the Monarchy

The trouble with most people is that they lack any sense of history and worse, show no interest in it. This demonstrates itself brilliantly when “something happens” and like teenagers discovering sex, imagine that they are the “very first people” to have discovered it !

The reality is that the Monarchy will continue and likely prosper in the decades ahead sometimes being less popular and at other times being very popular. It will survive for the same simple reason that it was which led to the Restoration of Charles II, it removes from the public domain the “Top Job” albeit that it is a job lacking in any real power. But for many, the Blairs would be a good example one might guess, that would not deter them for wanting the “glittering bauble”.

Never to be Trusted

Politicians are a funny lot, most seem highly ego driven and the thought of someone holding the “highest position in the land” by dint of birth, must really hack them off. I believe that just like Cherie Blair, Margaret Thatcher disliked the whole “Monarchy Thing” – bless

One should always remember that outside the Commons stands a statue of Cromwell a man who despite all he is normally associated with in ending the power of the Monarchy, rather like the de Montforts before him, tried to set up his own regal dynasty by appointing his son as his successor. One of the best things about Cromwell was that he died relatively young !

Better the Monarchy

The Monarch represents the Nations devoid of all politics hence “Soldiers of the Queen” and that would be hard to replace with a Southern Irish type “President”. And although in principles it grew from these shores, an American style President would just not work in the UK. One of the things you might notice is the genuine respect, regardless of the current incumbent, that Americans have for the Office of Commander in Chief and President of the United States, we just could not manage that over here.

How could we live with out calling the Prince of Wales Big Ears or Gordon Brown a certain part of the female anatomy – a more useful thing than he I might add. Sorry, it is just not within our gene pool, the Monarchy will just have to stay, tabloid journalists depend on it, they are still cursing the cruel Fates that robbed them of 50% of their output when Diana died.

The Fashion Business

Republicanism like Atheism and ladies hemlines, are fashion items that come and go with the changing times. Of course like some women insist on wearing their hemlines at a given length regardless of the trend, there will always be a core of republican and atheist ‘believers’ but it changes nothing.

As for the cost of Monarchy, as the taxpayer gets the benefit of all the income from the Crown Estates which is far greater than that of the Duchy of Cornwall or the Civil List, we get a good deal but, it will never satisfy the bitter little Eyeores of this world and the fundamentally mean spirited but, they can go suck on a lemon.

Footnote:

The Press is making some fuss about the Queen wanting an uplift in the “Civil List” which currently stands at £7.9 million a year and hasn’t been increased for 20 years. Apparently the overall cost of the Monarchy is now about £40 million a year plus roughly £50 million on security so a total cost of just under £98 million a year.

Against this of course must set the income from the Crown Estates. The civil list has been paid to the monarch since George III surrendered income from the Crown Estate to the government in 1760, in exchange for a fixed annual payment from the Treasury. The Crown Estate last year made a profit of £211m. About 70% of the civil list money goes towards salaries and pensions for staff. It also pays for official functions such as garden parties, receptions and official entertainments.

So it seems as if the taxpayer not only has an attractive tourist asset in the Monarchy but gets a direct profit of over £100 million a year as well, sounds like good value to me. Of course some twat will say that the Monarch’s Crown Estates were all stolen originally from other people centuries ago which is an interesting argument if an obscure one. On the same logic one might argue that the United States was stolen from the Red Indian tribes…and it is hardly likely that any restituion will ever be made on that one.