Prince Charles' income - Duchy of Cornwall FOI request

[Gerrard Winstanley]

Revealed: Prince Charles has earned £270million from property deals
since 2001

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1041920/Revealed-Prince-Charles-earned-270million-property-deals-2001.html#
By Rebecca English
Last updated at 12:15 AM on 06th August 2008

Prince Charles has funded his household with £200million worth of
property deals since 2001

Prince Charles has benefited from a staggering £271million-worth of
property deals in order to fund his household over the past seven years.

The Duchy of Cornwall, which provides the heir to the throne with his
personal income, bought, sold or renovated dozens of properties
resulting in a £43million profit.

The deals range from the £30million sale of a block of shops to a
parcel of farmland worth a modest £40,000.

The estate also paid £2million towards the construction of a new stand
at the Oval cricket ground, which it already owns.

It was, insiders claim, a project the prince expressed a 'strong
personal interest' in. 

In addition, the estate lavished £1.3million in November 2006 on
Charles and Camilla's new Welsh hideaway, Llwynywormwood, near
Llandovery in Carmarthenshire.

As revealed by the Daily Mail earlier this year, the Duchy has also
confirmed paying Camilla's sister, the interior designer Annabel
Elliot, more than £300,000 to renovate its holiday cottages on the
Scilly Isles.

The main purpose of the Duchy of Cornwall  -  which was created in
1337 by Edward III for his eldest son Prince Edward  -  is to provide
an income for the heir to the throne.

It currently funds all of Charles's private spending as well as the
majority of his official and charitable activities. The prince also
chooses to use it to fund the growing household of his two sons,
Princes William and Harry. 

Under the 1337 charter, the Prince of Wales is not entitled to any
proceeds or profit on the sale of the Duchy's capital assets, but only
to its annual income, on which be currently pays 40 per cent tax. 

He is also not liable for capital gains tax because any money raised
from the sales is ploughed back into the estate. 

Although the Duchy is run by its own board, the Treasury must approve
all property transactions with a value above £200,000.

The estate  -  which also has a financial investment portfolio  - 
consists of around 54,521 hectares of land in 23 counties, mostly in
the South-West of England.

It includes agricultural, residential and commercial property holdings
and is valued at £647million  -  a 6 per cent rise on last year. 

The Prince's income from the Duchy in 2007 was £16.3million or
£12.8million after tax.

Details of the individual property deals were released for the first
time yesterday by the Treasury under a Freedom of Information request. 

The rise in the estate's value, which is predominantly farmland, has
been explained by the huge growth in the value of agricultural land  -
 the biggest annual rise for 25 years. 

A Clarence House spokesman said: ' Corporation tax is not paid because
it is not a corporation. The Prince of Wales pays 40 per cent income
tax on his income from the Duchy.'