The high cost of royalty

Things must be tough all over when Britain's royal family starts feeling the pinch. Pity the poor royals.

Queen Elizabeth II has been dipping into her reserve fund to offset the growing expenses of her family, according to a recent report on the royal finances. But the reserves aren't unlimited and a taxpayer bailout may not be far off.

Expenses for the year ending in March were $68.6 million, and the queen was forced to use $9.9 million in reserves to balance the books for travel, staff and living expenses.

The reserve fund will be depleted by 2012 at the current rate. The queen is expected to seek more state aid, according to news reports.

Travel costs for the royal family have soared because of the unavailability of Royal Air Force planes to accommodate their globe-trotting. Consequently, they have been forced to charter commercial jets. Maybe they should fly commercial.

Other cuts might be in order during these challenging times. Spending $600,000 a year on garden parties, for example, is probably a little excessive even for royalty during the current economic climate.