PRINCE Harry and Meghan Markle have paid taxpayers back £2.4million for renovations on Frogmore Cottage. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were urged by MPs to refund the money spent on their Windsor home after netting a £112million megabucks deal with Netflix last week. A spokesman for the couple said: “A contribution has been made […]
PRINCE Harry and Meghan Markle have paid taxpayers back £2.4million for renovations on Frogmore Cottage.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were urged by MPs to refund the money spent on their Windsor home after netting a £112million megabucks deal with Netflix last week.
Read our Meghan and Harry blog for the latest news on the Royal couple.
A spokesman for the couple said: “A contribution has been made to the Sovereign Grant by The Duke of Sussex.
“This contribution, as originally offered by Prince Harry, has fully covered the necessary renovation costs of Frogmore Cottage, a property of Her Majesty The Queen, and will remain the UK residence of The Duke and his family.”
Grade II-listed Frogmore Cottage in Windsor was a wedding gift from the Queen but remains empty after Meghan and Harry left for LA with baby Archie.
Originally, the couple were said to be paying rent of £18,000 a month to keep the home if they returned to the UK.
But they now live in a £11m nine-bedroom and 16-bathroom mansion in upscale Montecito, Santa Barbara.
Frogmore had fallen into disrepair before the couple moved in.
Builders worked around the clock for about six months so they could move in before the birth of baby Archie.
It needed extensive rewiring — including a new electrical substation — and the installation of modern gas and water mains.
The public paid for the kitchen, bathrooms and even fitted wardrobes, as well as the services of a renowned interior designer.
Wooden ceiling beams and floor joists were also replaced while inefficient heating systems were updated.
But the hefty £2.4million repair bill was covered by the taxpayer.
It comes as it emerged Prince Charles is no longer bankrolling his son after the mega-bucks Netflix deal.
The Prince of Wales funded the pair’s jaunt to California since they stepped down as senior royals at the end of March.
This was despite the couple vowing in their Megxit statement they would “work to become financially independent.”
Questions were raised when they took out a $9.5million mortgage on a 14,563-sq ft mansion in Montecito this summer – while still paying Frogmore back.
Harry had previously clashed with the royal family over funds after marrying former actress Meghan Markle in 2018.
According to bombshell biography Finding Freedom the Duchy of Cornwall “controlled the purse strings”.
Authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand claimed: “The brothers sometimes had to vie for additional funds for projects from their father, who also helped cover expenses related to Camilla and some of those for his sons (including Kate and Meghan’s wardrobes).
“‘They actually genuinely have to debate who gets what amount of money from their father to fund their projects’, an aide said. ‘Add in the fact that there is an inherent hierarchy and that is really tricky’.”
