Fresh on the heels of signing a content deal with Netflix, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle said in a statement that they have “fully covered the necessary renovation costs” and the cottage will remain their UK home.
A spokesperson for the couple tweeted: “This contribution, as originally offered by Prince Harry, has fully covered the necessary renovation costs of Frogmore Cottage a property of Her Majesty The Queen, and will remain the UK residence of The Duke and his family.” The payment covers the renovations that were estimated to be worth £2.4 Million
The public money spent on the cottage only applied to the structural renovations and the Sussexes had already paid for the fixtures and fittings themselves.
At the time the couple announced their plans to step back from Royal duties they had offered to pay back the public money spent on Frogmore as part of their move to free themselves from public funding and achieve the financial independence that would give them the freedom to run their work and media policy as they wished. The Mail on Sunday broke the story earlier this year that the Sussexes were paying the money back in installments. However, since the news was announced last week that the couple has signed a lucrative multi-year production deal with Netflix, they had received some criticism that they should pay the money back sooner.
Although the Royals have not been back in the UK since the COVID pandemic hit they made it cleat that living part time in the UK was still part of their plan. They wrote in an Instagram post “,We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages. This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity. “
Leave a comment