The surprise announcement came amid growing pressure on the king over the Duchy of Lancaster’s use of funds collected from people who die in the northwest of England with no will or next of kin.
Last week, the Guardian revealed some of the funds were secretly being used to renovate properties that are owned by the king and rented out for profit by his estate. The duchy conceded that some bona vacantia revenues are financing the restoration of what it calls “public and historic properties”. However, the king’s estate has also been battling separate questions over its management of another portion of bona vacantia funds that are given to its charities.
Two of those charities have used bona vacantia to build endowment funds worth more than £40m. Their accounts state there are “no specific constraints on the investment portfolio in terms of ethical, social or environmental (ESG) matters”, although investment managers are advised to take such matters “into consideration”.
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