Prince William's income revealed by new royal accounts
The Prince of Wales received an annual private income of more than £23 million last year, accounts have shown.
As heir to the throne, Prince William, 42, is entitled to the surplus profits of the Duchy of Cornwall estate, and received the full amount in 2023 to 24, his first full financial year as the Duke of Cornwall.
The Duchy of Cornwall is one of the largest and oldest landed estates in Britain and was created in 1337 by Edward III to support his son and heir Prince Edward, known as the Black Prince, and all his subsequent heirs.
It extends across 23 counties in England and Wales and includes the Oval cricket ground and 67,000 acres of Dartmoor.
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The money is used to fund the official, charitable and private lives of William, Kate and their three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
Last year William received around £6 million from the Duchy because he became the Duke of Cornwall on the death of the late Queen half-way through the financial year, and the Duchy also asked to retain an extra proportion for the day-to-day running of the estate.
William on WhatsApp
Alastair Martin, the Duchy of Cornwall’s secretary and keeper of records, also spoke about the difference between William and his predecessor, King Charles, in the role.
"Sustainability is a passion that they both share but there are some differences," he said. "His Royal Highness the 24th duke would telephone me. His Royal Highness the 25th Duke, will WhatsApp me."
He added: "The day after her Late Majesty died, I rang Prince William to say 'Welcome to your Duchy, Sir'.
"I obviously knew him, I'd been working with him for the previous eight years or ten years, to really explain to him what his future was during the time he was heir to the throne.
"And he said, 'I'm going to give you my mobile telephone number – if you want me, just get me, just message me'.
"And that's how he works and he is very involved. There will be weekends when my WhatsApp messages will be in double figures and I will be very responsive.
"If something has gone well or badly, I will want to tell my boss and he’ll be straight back."
William takes on new patronages
The report also included an update on new patronages for William, with a change-up in his role at the Football Association.
The future king, who is a passionate football fan, will switch to patron of The FA, having previously held the role of president since 2006. It's understood that the change is to reflect his seniority as Prince of Wales. The FA patronage was previously held by his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II.
William will also become patron of the Welsh Guards Charity, the Royal Cornwall Agricultural Association and president of the Victoria Cross and George Cross Association, and move from president to patron of Fields in Trust.
The Prince's Private Secretary, Ian Patrick, said: "The Prince and Princess of Wales's number one priority is to deliver impact. The approach they take to their charitable endeavours is an evolution of how members of the royal family have worked in the past.
"Their royal highnesses wish to focus their time on a smaller number of causes that are aligned with their values and allow them to build deeper relationships with organisations, engage in a constructive way, and deepen their knowledge of the issues that these organisations champion."
Mr Patrick also hinted at an "exciting" new project which William and Kate have personally funded to help improve mental health outcomes in rural communities, details of which will be released later in the year.
The Princess is still undergoing cancer treatment, with Mr Patrick saying there was no further update about Kate's health.
"For the latter part of this period, Her Royal Highness has been undergoing a course of preventative chemotherapy which remains ongoing. We will not be providing an update on that today," he said.
William and Kate expand staff
The report also showed that the number of staff employed by the Prince and Princess of Wales's household has risen from 50 to 66, including secondees.
Diversity figures show 14 per cent of staff were from an ethnic minority background, down from 16.3 per cent of staff the year before.
New hires include William's new Private Secretary, Ian Patrick, who joined in March, and Kate's new Private Secretary, Tom White, who took on the role in February.
