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英國女王日前向剛剛組建的聯(lián)合政府提出加薪要求，以填補王室高達600萬英鎊的財政赤字。據(jù)悉，這是女王二十年來首次提出加薪。1990年至2010年期間，英國政府每年撥給女王790萬英鎊專項費用，用于支付王室工作人員薪水、養(yǎng)老金以及官方招待等開支。2000年以前，由于物價水平低和開銷處理得當，女王專項費用尚有3500萬英鎊的結(jié)余。而最近幾年，王室支出不斷增加，每年790萬英鎊的專項費用變得入不敷出，便開始動用之前的結(jié)余資金，預計到2012年，這筆資金也將見底。在英國新政府正準備大砍六十億英鎊的公共開支，以解決創(chuàng)紀錄的財政赤字之際，女王的加薪要求聽來格外刺耳。英國主張廢除王室的壓力團體“共和”的選戰(zhàn)經(jīng)理史密斯就批評，這個要求是“國恥”，他說王室需要更多的錢，是因為他們浪費、又不透明、又無能。但是保守黨國會議員、監(jiān)督王室財政的公共支出委員會主席卻贊成給王室加薪，他認為以王室非常少的資源來說，女王和王室家庭做得已經(jīng)很好了。
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The Queen is demanding her first pay rise in 20 years to plug a looming ￡6million deficit in the royal household's finances. |
The Queen is demanding her first pay rise in 20 years to plug a looming ￡6million deficit in the royal household's finances.
Palace officials have warned the Treasury they need a dramatic rise in the ￡7.9million annual civil list to maintain spending on state duties.
The request is politically explosive at a time when the new coalition is imposing draconian ￡6billion public sector cuts to bring down Britain's record deficit.
The ￡7.9million grant covers the cost of the official royal household, from banquets and furnishings to housemaids and footmen.
The Queen's treasurer Sir Alan Reid has told Government officials that the monarch's expenditure is running at ￡6million more than the annual allowance. The shortfall is being met by an emergency reserve which is due to run out in 2012 - the Queen's Diamond Jubilee year.
The civil list is negotiated every ten years and the Government has to report to Parliament on the grant by July 3 at the latest.
Courtiers say the Queen should, at least, expect an increase to her annual funding which takes account of inflation over the past two decades. Prices have soared by 80 per cent in that time.
The current level of the civil list was agreed by former prime minister John Major when he was chancellor of the exchequer in 1990, and frozen by Tony Blair in 2000.
Palace officials have since been dipping into a surplus accumulated in the 1990s, which peaked with a cash reserve of ￡35million. However, this is down to ￡14million and due to run out in 2012. One royal courtier said: 'The Queen has only been able to manage by very prudent financial management and by drawing on reserves.'
The monarchy costs more than ￡41.5million a year in public funds, equivalent to 69p a year for each taxpayer - excluding the cost of security. About 70 percent of the ￡7.9million civil list expenditure goes on staff salaries. It also pays for official functions such as garden parties, receptions and entertainment.
Graham Smith, of Republic, which campaigns for an elected head of state, said the request was a 'national disgrace'. He said: 'The palace is demanding more money because it has been wasteful, secretive and incompetent.'
But Tory MP Edward Leigh, chairman of the Public Accounts Committee which monitors the royal finances, said: 'The Queen needs substantially more money to carry out her duties and responsibilities. The Queen and the Royal Family do a fantastic job considering their very small resources.'
相關(guān)閱讀
(Agencies)
Vocabulary:
civil list: （英國議會每年提供的）王室年俸
（中國日報網(wǎng)英語點津 Helen 編輯）
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