Do the Royals need our help?

The News of the World brought you the exclusive story of the Royals and their premium rate phone pledge line.  Callers could phone a pricey PREMIUM RATE number and listen to a personal plea and thank-you from Her Majesty. The longer they stayed on the line, the more they'd donate.

What do you think of this?  Would you be willing to donate to help an impoverished Royal?  Let us know what you think here.

Click here to read the full story

Comments

[colin whelbourn]

The Royal Family live in the palaces etc that belong to the nation do you want them do go into slow decay.
As for a president instead of a Queen or King
how about PRESIDENT BLAIR!!!!????.

[Philip Marsh]

As we move into the 21st century it's time to say goodbye to the monarchy.

[Fred Bloggs]

Say what you like about the French - and I'm sure you do - they had a speed and efficiency second to none when it came to getting rid of a class that had outlived its usefulness.

I'm sure that there must, in some museum or other, be a guillotine in good working order. Could we not borrow it and rid ourselves of this parasitic bunch of freeloaders? If it were done in front of the Palace, it would provide a grand day out for the whole family.

[john adamson]

unfortunately the costs of haveing a President are MORE than the cost of the Royals. France and Germany pay more than we do, and the idea of haveing a politically biased head of state doesnt seem right in a democracy. a constitutional monarchy with a neutral monarch seems fairer to all.

[DFW]

I think it is a novel idea for the royal family to beg for money , maybe we can expect a rebate on our taxes now that their dignity is no longer an issue ,

[KAY GORDON]

I REALLY UNDERSTAND THE PROBLEM. BUT IF THE QUEEN NEEDS DONATIONS. SHE SHOULD ASK GORDON BROWN.HE KEEPS TAKING MOST OF MINE AND EVERYONE ELSE:S

[Dawn Calder]

They are having a laugh aint they?!?! Tell them to use their own personal fortune to decorate their homes, we have to! Why should we fund them even more money than we do now?
God they make me and spit!!! Hard done by my ass

[CS]

1. Have 3rd and 4th year Electrical Engineering students earn their degrees by putting them to work at BP and Windsor Castle. It is called Interning and it is costs the taxpayers and the Queen NOTHING. If the students mess up, they hurt themselves as no one will hire them later. It is the ultimate exam.

2. Work for Pardon Program for White Collar Prisoners. You want to get out of jail sooner: Earn it by removing asbestos, etc.

3. Some of these prisoners must have been jailed for embezzlement. Allow them to go over the Queen's accounts and find "the leaks" or "black holes", thus, earning their way out of prison. As FDR said when he made Joseph P. Kennedy head of the SEC, "It takes a crook to catch a crook".

4. All these "Youth of Britian" or "YOB"'s need some kind of apprenticeships, which I thought for the Europeans, started at age 15. Lower the age to 8, and get these kids some skills in painting, etc, then allow them to Intern for the Royals. Learn a trade, free labor for taxpayers, and what a wonderful thing to write on these kids' resumes!!

5. Donating time and skills NOT pounds. Call up Volunteers and retired Engineers to come to the palaces. In return: perks, titles, print their names in National newspapers, give them a MEDAL...the sky is free and unlimited, use your noggins.

5 simple solutions. Call the Queen and get cracking!!!

[Carrie]

Begging bowl my foot! It is time for this family to get a real job! No one does any real work. Let the Queen and Charles pay for the upkeep of their own homes. Its not as if any of the commoners would be allowed to stay there. Why not turn them into hotels for tourists. I can see the day they will be apartment buildings. People are poorer than ever now, how dare these national free loaders expect more off the backs of the people.

[Tommy taxpayer, a Manchester resident]

The Queen is down to her last £320 million yet crying poor! I wish that I had £320 million! It is time to scrap these greedy royals!

[Charlie]

The royals are greedy and shameless and I am glad that I will be emigrating soon, so I will not need to support them any more!

[E. Atkins]

The royal family can come to my place and stay a week and then they will learn what living on a budget means! The gall of them to think that the taxpayer should send them even more money to squander!

[B.A.C.]

I am absolutely furious that the Royals would have the audacity to beg for money when this country is rapidly heading for financial annihilation! And thanks to her giving Royal Assent to the Lisbon Treaty, we may soon cease to exist at all, and be swallowed up by the EU Black Hole!

[Robert Winchester]

The monarchy has become too big and too expensive now, so it has to be axed. Or the Queen will have to cope with one house, a strict budget, and no homes or allowances for any of the relatives. All royals should pay the same rate of tax that everyone else does too!

[Jan]

Royal homes like Buckingham Palace belong to the British people, who pay taxes to maintain them, yet you have to pay to get into the places if you visit! So where does all that money go? The Queen and her relatives live rent free in many homes. Why do they need all these massive homes? It is time to give them a small budget and make them stick to it, or throw the lot out!

[Mary]

So Her Maj is down to her last £320 Million, and expects the public to cough up millions more so she can live in more comfort than ever! Sorry, but I have enough problems of my own! If she cannot manage, then abdicate!

[Marilyn Mary Havers]

These royal scroungers remind me of the French Royal family, by living in luxury, and then having the bare-faced cheek to demand even more! We all know what happened to the greedy French royals!

[Ingrid from Essex]

So Her Majesty is down to her last £320 million. Well I am down to my last £320 and facing eviction from my home. I have now had to take on a second job. I for one will not be sending any more money to these rich, greedy, spoilt royals!

[Astrid Espersen]

I am of Danish and English extraction, and I do not see why the British royals do not live a less extravagant lifestyle, as the Danish royals do. For instance, I fail to see why the British taxpayers have to pay for security for Fergie's children, when they are only distant relatives of the Queen, or why the Brits pay for the expenses of Princess Anne, when she is not high in the line of succession. I support reform, not abolition, of the monarchy.

[Brittany Westinghouse]

I am a staunch royalist, but I cannot abide greed! The royals must be made to tighten their belts in these tough economic times!

[Malcolm]

The Royal Estate has just spent 90 odd million on more property for their portfolio, so how can the Queen cry poor? It is time to toss out these scroungers and elect a President.

[Mike]

The royals have brought sbout their own demise with their greed and terrible behaviour. After they destroyed Diana, I lost all respect for them. This greedy German family have a right nerve demanding more money at a time when many old aged pensioners are starving! I now support a Republic.

[Rosemary Hogan-Parks]

I emigrated from England to the USA, and I think that whatever the faults of their system, at least the people elect their Head of State and Senate, and can kick them out! An American President would never hand over America's sovereignty to a foreign power. The Queen let the British people down by signing off on the EU treaties, so she deserves to go!

[S.C.]

The poor Queen, down to her last £320 Million!Quick, send around the begging bowl before she starves! What a joke! I never thought I'd say it but bring on the Republic!

[Dave]

I always respected the Queen, until she gave royal assent to the Lisbon Treaty, thus going against her coronation oath, so she ceased to be Queen in my book. And once the British are fully taken over by EU, there will be no need for her, as the EU President will be Head of State. The Queen is a traitor!