Archive: Corporate-sponsored royal couple on tax-revenue funded US trip swap down-at-heel Anglesey for “cash-for-access” lifestyle
First published at Luikkerland, June 2011
William Saxe-Coburg-Gothe and Kate Middleton are provoking suspicions of facilitating a “cash-for-access” social court with their upcoming trip to the United States. The centre-piece of the trip will be a polo event that has already been called California’s £3 million social event of the decade. The event will provide an opportunity for super-rich US citizens who have forgotten why their country is a republic to acquire “social kudos” by grovelling and genuflecting to the descendent of the German king from whose tyranny their ancestors freed themselves. Attendees will pay up to £60,000 for this privilege, and the proceeds will go to a recently and hurriedly established charity associated with the British-based Foundation of Prince William and Prince Harry. As per the legalities in the US, a Mail source admits that the charity will attract donations from people looking to earn a tax break, although suspicions that the charity is serving as a “shadow banking facility” would be groundless, and doubtlessly, the South African Apartheid-era diamond and gold industry family that is involved in looking after the charity would not countenance any such accusations.
The “cash for access” lifestyle that has recently been identified as a feature of the Royal Family’s conduct in their public affairs is now something that William and Kate are fast becoming identified with. It was understood that several Royals benefitted from cut-price leasing deals with Audi, and there was speculation that this had everything to do with why Audi public relations executive, Jon Zammett, had been invited to William and Kate’s wedding breakfast. The Mail now reports that under the sponsorship, William and Kate will be “ferried around Santa Barbara Polo And Racquet Club’s exquisitely manicured 36 acres in a top-of-the-range Audi A8”. The event is also sponsored by Scotch whisky, Royal Salute – which is the appellation that William’s polo team will play under – Tiffany & co (jewellers) and Jack Wills (outfitters).
Critics are worried about the creation of corporate “ownership” of the Monarchy whereby monies paid to them to manage through charities, or financial incentives are given with an expectation to return a favour either by endorsing a product (indirectly through its usage), or by some other deed. The Monarchy was supposed to receive the civil list so that it could be limited in its financial power and not seek monetary remuneration elsewhere. This restriction was done away with recently by the Coalition government, and subsequently the Monarchy is set to generate EU related income from hosting wind farms on Crown Estate. It also receives farming subsidy payments from the EU that the government goes to great lengths to hide. The whole scenario leaves the Head of State and heirs open to attempts of bribery to commit treason, and although it should engender fear regarding a supposedly sacrosanct constitution, there is little anxiety about it amongst the British.
On the other hand, a great deal of fuss was made about William and Kate Middleton’s apparent efforts to live without lavishness and as befitting the times. Photos of Kate Middleton pushing a shopping trolley and details of her homely conversations with local merchants in suburban North Wales were splashed around the establishment propaganda outlets.
In stark contrast, the US trip will provide the real effortless lifestyle that we should expect William and Kate Middleton to indulge in. Indeed, it is admitted that the US trip was very much an after-thought and conceived as a bolt-on to a pre-existing official “working” engagement in Canada as heirs to the Head of State. Whereas that trip is mostly paid for by the Canadian tax-payer, the US trip will be paid for by the British. Despite the feeble mantra offered by Buckingham Palace that William and Kate will “hoist the flag” for Britain, the trip is essentially one in which private business will be transacted at the tax-payers’ expense.
The genesis of the US trip is also somewhat surrounded in mystery. The charity was registered in the US by (as the Mail relates) “a director of a mining conglomerate founded by Charles Engelhard – the inspiration for James Bond villain Goldfinger, who made a fortune thwarting a British wartime ban on the export of South African gold bars.” The charity was registered in the US the day after the royal wedding – suggesting that the trip, which was also announced afterwards, might have been devised at the gathering for the event. If this is correct, then it gives the assembly of rich and powerful at the wedding a kind of Bilderbergian “meet and decision-make” feel.
