The iconic Buckingham Palace has been undergoing a 10-year refurbishment project, reducing the fire and flood risk, and is expected to be completed next March. The project has cost £369 million, replacing boilers, electrical cables, and pipes.
The King and Queen have decided not to adopt Buckingham Palace as a personal residence and will instead continue to use Clarence House as their London home. However, they will have access to private rooms within the palace where they can retire during the day.
The decision has been made to greatly increase opportunities for public access to the palace. The palace will still be used for official royal business and will remain a working home. A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said that the palace will be seeking to widen public access to maximise the national benefit of a publicly funded building.
It has been six years since Queen Elizabeth II last stayed overnight at the palace, with the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh spending much of the lockdown at Windsor Castle. The Queen's note, written at Windsor Castle, had been a message to the nation before the first Covid lockdown was announced.
The decision not to move into the palace has left some campaigners frustrated, given the expense of the refurbishments. Graham Smith, chief executive officer of Republic, said that the palace needs to be fully open to the public all year round.
Between 2024 and 2025, over 683,000 visitors strolled through Buckingham Palace, despite reduced days and parts of the palace being shut. An estimated 2.3 million visitors are believed to have visited the royal estates and exhibitions, generating over £90 million in ticket sales.
A string of royal accounts were published, including the first-ever tax bill from a monarch, which was £12.9 million for 2024-25. The Prince of Wales released his tax details for the first time, paying £7.76 million in income and capital gains tax in 2024-25.
The Sovereign Grant, which funds Charles's official duties and the work of his household, increased by £45.8 million to £132.1 million in 2025-26. The grant has a core element covering the cost of things such as travel, property maintenance, and payroll, which has almost doubled in three years.
