The taxpayers’ bill for sending the Prince of Wales on his travels around the world rose by more than £500,000 last year, official figures show.

Not only did he spend more on travel and other official duties than ever before, but he also earned more from the Duchy of Cornwall and employed more staff. Yet he managed to cut his tax bill by nearly 10 per cent.

The increase in the cost of his official travel by air and rail — from £1,157,000 to £1,710,000 — contributed to a 23.5 per cent increase in his official funding, from £2,454,000 to £3,033,000.

Most of the increase in spending was due to the £1 million-plus cost of two big overseas tours, one to the Far East last year and one to South and Central America this spring.

The trips, which have been criticised as an expensive luxury as well as damaging to the environment, were defended by Clarence House. The Prince’s principal private secretary, Sir Michael Peat, said: “The expenditure is approved by the Government, and the Government — and indeed ourselves — really do believe that it is an investment well made.”

The overseas tours were not just expensive, however. They also led to a 16 per cent increase in his carbon emissions from official travel. “The Prince would prefer not to be associated with carbon emissions at all,” Sir Michael said. “In order to engage round the world at the highest level and to make things happen, you need to travel.”

The Prince’s income from the Duchy of Cornwall rose from £16,273,000 to £16,458,000, making his total income £19,491,000. Much of that was written off against tax as business costs, resulting in a total tax bill — the Prince pays 40 per cent tax on his income — of £3,093,000, down 9.8 per cent on £3,429,000 last year.

For once the accounts may help to repair the image of a Prince often seen as profligate. He cut his personal spending — all those expenses not associated with royal business — by more than £500,000, from £2,217,000 to £1,710,000, a reduction that Sir Michael said was partly explained by the Prince’s decision to take all his holidays in the UK last year.

“It’s a recession and we have to say that we’ve looked at all costs very carefully,” he said. “We are by no means immune to it. The Duchy of Cornwall is a ship designed to sail in most weather conditions but we have to look at areas and be careful. We are reviewing all costs the whole time.

Although the Prince has been paring costs at home, and has reduced his personal staff by eight to 27, his official household is bigger than ever. The total number of staff has risen by 14 to 125, with an annual wages bill of £6,244,000. Sir Michael said that this — and a 19.7 per cent increase in official spending from £10,451,000 to £12,513,000 — showed that the Prince was busier than ever.

“The Prince is entering his seventh decade and many people would be slowing down but I’m afraid that he seems to be going faster and faster, which is wonderful but a bit exhausting for the rest of us.”

Royal review

£19,491,000 Prince’s total income in 2008-09

£3,033,000 His total cost to the taxpayer over the same period

48% Increase in the cost of his official air and rail travel

1,658 tonnes Total carbon emissions from the Prince’s official travels

£49,952 Average wage of his 125 official staff

£65,000 Amount spent on the Prince’s gardens

2,662 Number of personal letters that he wrote

Source: Prince of Wales’s annual review, 2008-09

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