The royal family should not face an extra cut in their budget and there is no reason to restrict the queen’s role as head of state, prime minister Mark Rutte told MPs on Thursday.

Rutte was responding to calls from across the political spectrum for a reduction in the royal family budget – in line with the drop in spending power affecting the country as a whole.
But Rutte said there is ‘no need whatsoever’ to reduce the queen’s allowances and other funding. ‘Their money has already been frozen, just like civil servants,’ Rutte is quoted as saying.
Last year
MPs accused the prime minister of juggling with figures. The 4% cut he referred to was implemented last year, one Socialist MP pointed out.
Rutte also said he is opposed to ending the queen’s role as head of the government. If the monarch is no longer part of the government, he or she is no longer subject to its control, the prime minister said.
The government’s alliance partner, Geert Wilders’ PVV, wants the queen’s role to be reduced to a purely ceremonial one.
Rutte also told MPs there is no reason to start taxing the royal family’s income because the gesture would be purely symbolic, he said. It is also important not to make the queen and her children pay inheritance tax in order to guarantee the family’s assets, he said.
The debate continues into Thursday evening, when MPs will vote on a number of motions dealing with the royal family.