Queen Elizabeth II remains Britain's most popular royal, with 81% of Britons having a positive view of her. Support for the monarchy among Britons is strong at 64%. Prince William has a positive view among 76% of Britons.
Princess Catherine has a positive view among 75% of Britons. King Charles is popular with 60% of Britons. However, 20% of Britons say King Charles is doing a bad job as king.
Clearly the shine is coming off the royals for large swathes of the public. People are realising the monarchy is not such great value for money, while they increasingly have doubts about the royals' response to the Andrew scandal.
In contrast, specific royals face significant criticism and lower popularity. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has a positive view among only 3% of Britons. Prince Harry has a positive view among 30% of Britons.
Meghan Markle has a positive view among 20% of Britons. According to Daily Express - Politics, Graham Smith, head of anti-monarchy campaign group Republic, described that the shine is coming off the royals for large swathes of the public. Public perception of the Royal Family's value for money has declined sharply.
As societal values evolve, the monarchy's ability to adapt and address these concerns will be pivotal in maintaining its relevance and support.
The share of Britons who believe the Royal Family is good value for money for the taxpayer has tumbled from 48% in April last year to 35% in February. A generational divide is evident, with half of those aged 55 to 75 thinking the Royal Family is good value for money, compared to fewer than one in four (23%) Britons aged 18-34. There is growing public demand for greater scrutiny of royal finances.
23% of the public said there was too much scrutiny by the media of royal finances, while a third said there was too little. 63% of British voters believe royal finances should face the same public scrutiny applied to Government expenditure, while 19% oppose such measures. According to Daily Express - Royal, Graham Smith described that if anyone spends public money the public have a right to know about it.
If anyone spends public money the public have a right to know about it. It’s that simple.
Perceptions of the monarchy's future and transparency under King Charles are mixed. 62% of voters believe the UK will still have a monarchy in 20 years' time. 35% think the monarchy has become more transparent since the arrival of King Charles in office, while 21% say it has grown more secretive.
Half say the Royal Family has become divided during King Charles's reign, with 15% saying it is more united. According to Daily Express - Politics, Gideon Skinner of Ipsos described that as societal values evolve, the monarchy's ability to adapt and address these concerns will be pivotal. Financially, the sovereign grant has increased significantly.
The monarchy has no place in a modern democracy. It’s running out of road and the sooner it goes the better.
1 million in 2025-26. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's legal troubles continue to cast a shadow. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in a public office.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor denies any criminal wrongdoing regarding the Epstein matter.