The UK government will bail out Queen Elizabeth's estate following a significant slip in revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last week the Crown Estate announced more than a $107 million drop in the value of its rental portfolio, bringing it down to $26 billion, reports the London Economic.
The Crown Estate owns prime real estate in London and around the country, however rental income has dropped sharply since the outbreak of COVID-19 and subsequent lockdowns.
A spokesperson for the Treasury told The Independent that it will give the estate extra money to meet any shortfalls in profit.
"The revenue from the Crown Estate helps pay for our vital public services," said the spokesperson.
Any profits the royal estate makes are passed back to the Treasury, which then hands a quarter of those profits back to the Queen in the form of the sovereign grant." The sovereign grant funds the official business of the monarchy, and does not provide a private income to any member of the royal family," said the spokesperson.
An agreement with the Treasury means the estate has begun making "staggered" revenue payments to the Government, reports The Independent.
Robert Palmer, the head of Tax Justice UK, says the bailout will be "tough to stomach" for those who love the Queen but have lost jobs and businesses to the pandemic.
Palmer's prediction was proven correct by furious social media users questioning whether the bailout was necessary.
"One of the wealthiest people on the planet! This is a joke right?" wrote one man.
