This week was key for the Spanish monarchy, which lifted the veil that covered some financial management.
On the one hand, the Council of Ministers approved a decree that establishes that the accounts of the Royal House will be audited by the Court of Accounts, like all State institutions. And, on the other, King Felipe VI announced his assets, amounting to 2.5 million euros.
(You might be interested in: The biography of King Juan Carlos I that reveals details of his current life)
“The Crown must earn the respect, appreciation and trust” of the Spanish, the new king said in his proclamation speech. This week has been the most important to achieve that goal.
Both actions are aimed at opening doors towards a transparency of the Royal House that society demands after the scandals carried out by Juan Carlos I.
(You might be interested: British Justice prohibits Juan Carlos I from resorting to his immunity ruling)
The emeritus king went into exile in the United Arab Emirates in 2020, after opaque movements of accounts abroad were discovered. Although he was not brought to justice for immunity or preclusion of terms, it was established that he had committed a crime.
With these reforms, Felipe VI seeks to reestablish the good image of the monarchy.
This purpose was outlined since he came to the throne in June 2014, after the abdication of his father, forced by the discovery that he had traveled to hunt elephants with a lover, and by the missteps of his then son-in-law, Iñaki Urdangarin, who he was later in prison.
“The Crown must earn the respect, appreciation and trust” of the Spanishsaid the new king in his proclamation speech. This week has been the most important to achieve that goal.
However, two fundamental issues that society still demands must be addressed: discrimination for access to the throne, which gives men precedence over women, and the king’s immunity.
The Constitution should be reformed to abolish the so-called Salic law (which favors the male heir) and so that immunity only covers activities related to the exercise of office. Until now, it also includes private ones, which is why the emeritus king was not tried for alleged illicit enrichment.
Juan Calos I, Emeritus King of Spain.
auditing
The new measure also regulates hiring and establishes that their senior positions must publish their income statements both at the time of assuming their job and upon completion.
The government decree allows the Court of Accounts to audit the accounts of the King’s House. Unlike what happens with the rest of the reports that are sent to Congress, the real institution will receive the result of the audit and decide whether to make it public.
The new measure also regulates hiring and establishes that their senior positions must publish their income statements both at the time of assuming their job and upon completion.
On the other hand, it indicates that the website of La Zarzuela must publish its budget and a quarterly report on its execution, the contracts it signs, the salaries and remuneration of senior officials, the annual report on activities and the institutional gifts that are receive.
These must be incorporated into the National Heritage or be donated to non-profit entities.
In addition, a Code of Conduct lays the foundations for the behavior that the staff of the Casa del Rey must follow, based on the principles of honesty, exemplary and austerity.
The decree also establishes new contracting conditions and orders the publication of the budget and accounting procedure.
Many of these measures had already begun to be put into practice, due to the efforts of Felipe VI to offer transparency, but, for the first time, they are mandatory. The Casa del Rey is now treated as one more institution of the State.
Government Participation
![Corinna Larsen and Juan Carlos I](https://www.eltiempo.com/images/1x1.png)
Corinna Larsen was the lover of the King of Spain Juan Carlos I between 2004 and 2009, and for that she received a gift of 65 million dollars.
La Zarzuela worked together with the Government to reach this result. In fact, in December 2020, President Pedro Sánchez had already advanced the measure. “The king wants a constitutional monarchy adapted to the Spain of the 21st century”said.
“Renewal, accountability, Felipe VI is working there. We are going step by step.”
Until now the process was developing at half speed, while the legal issues of Juan Carlos I related to accounts abroad were clarified, where he deposited 65 million euros received from the king of Saudi Arabia.
That sum was paid for his participation in the concession of some works in the Arab country. He later transferred her to her ex-lover, Corinna Larsen.
The Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, was in charge of working on the decree. “The Spanish monarchy takes a step forward, advances in transparency and homologates itself to other Royal Houses,” he assured.
The King’s Budget
The total allocated to Felipe VI for the support of his family and the Casa del Rey is 8,431,150 euros. With them he must pay the staff, operating expenses, protocol, among others.
In an official statement, King Felipe VI announced his assets on Monday: 2,573,392.80 euros (after taxes). Of these, 2,267,942.80 correspond to current and savings accounts and fund shares. The rest, to art objects, antiques and jewelry.
The communication, published on the website of the Casa del Rey, clarifies that Felipe VI, guided by a “spirit of service and civic commitment, today adds his personal decision to make his heritage public to his constitutional responsibilities.”
The sum is made up, above all, of the remuneration he has received over the last 25 years: since 1998 as Prince of Asturias and since 2014 as King of Spain.
The salary he currently receives is 258,927 euros per year gross. Letizia, for her part, receives 142,402, while Queen Sofía receives 116,525, according to the 2022 General State Budgets.
The total allocated to Felipe VI for the support of his family and the Casa del Rey is 8,431,150 euros. With them he must pay the staff, operating, protocol and representation expenses, travel, and the necessary material for the different services.
![King Felipe of Spain](https://www.eltiempo.com/images/1x1.png)
King Felipe of Spain during a ceremony on the European Day for Victims of Terrorism. (Archive)
Other monarchs in Europe
The difference in the budget of Felipe VI and his European peers is due to the fact that he is the only king of monarchies on this continent who does not own property.
Disclosing budgets is not a common practice in monarchies, although they are increasingly providing greater clarity due to the demands of societies.
Elizabeth II’s personal wealth has not been officially published, but the Sunday Times Rich List put it at just under €500 million (all real estate included) in 2021. Her allocation for last year was close to €100 million. millions.
The heritage of King Philippe of Belgium is also not officially known, although it is known that the annual allocation is around 13 million. His father, Alberto II, had explained that his own assets in 2001 were 12.5 million euros.
That of King William of Orange, of the Netherlands, is another unknown. Quote magazine calculated it in 2021 at 1,200 million euros. Its annual allocation is 6.1 million and allocates the majority to the payment of personnel and materials.
The difference in the budget of Felipe VI and his European peers is due to the fact that he is the only king of monarchies on this continent who does not own property. In Spain, the assets of the Crown are publicly owned.
Besides, He has already renounced the possible inheritance that he could receive from his father, upon learning of the controversial sums he had received.
Precisely the debate that Juan Carlos I opened, with his unexemplary attitude, is the one that pressures his son to gradually abandon the secrecy that has covered the Spanish monarchy for centuries.
JUANITA SAMPER OSPINA
Correspondent of THE TIME
MADRID
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