Originally created by a small group of republicans in London in 1983, Republic was reinvented as a campaigning pressure group in 2006, when it became formally set up as a limited company with a board of directors and Executive Office. During the period between the announcement of the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton in 2010 and the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 2012 the group's supporters increased from around 9,000 to around 30,000, with around 500 new members being gained at the time of the 2011 Royal Wedding. By 2015 the group had two full-time members of staff and an income of £140,000. In 2016 it had over 5,000 paying members and about 35,000 online supporters.
Campaigns and issues
CEO Graham Smith criticised hereditary power as being "absurd" and monarchy as an outdated political institution that "abuses its position, abuses public money and which gives politicians too much power." Republic has said that after the death of Queen Elizabeth II it intends to mount a campaign for a referendum on the future of the monarchy. The group plans to do this during the period between the Queen's funeral and the coronation of Prince Charles.
Royal finances
Republic asserts that there is a lack of transparency and accountability with respect to the funding of the monarchy. The group believes the royal finances should be independently audited by the National Audit Office, like all other central government departments, and that the monarchy's exemption from the Freedom of Information Act should be removed. Republic's response to the annual royal finance reports is reported in the media. In 2009, while Buckingham Palace claimed the total cost of the monarchy to be £41.5m, Republic estimated the figure at £334 million, once additional costs such as royal security had been taken into account. Republic's calculations do not factor in the profits of the Crown Estate, which are transferred to the national coffers in return for the civil list ; they assert that the Crown Estate is the property of the monarch only in their capacity as Head of State, and therefore state property.
In May 2007 Republic persuaded Brian Iddon MP to table an early day motion about the lack of transparency in the Duchy of Cornwall's accounts. Following a legal ruling in 2011 that the Duchy of Cornwall was separate from Prince Charles for the purposes of regulation, Republic asked HM Revenue and Customs to investigate if the Duchy should still be exempt from tax. The tax exemption is based on the assumption that the Duchy estate is inseparable from the tax exempt person of Prince Charles, which is now open to question. In 2013, lobbying by Republic resulted in William Nye, Prince Charles's private secretary, appearing before the Public Accounts Committee to explain the Duchy's tax arrangements. Republic regularly criticises Prince Charles for expressing forthright views and lobbying on political issues, which the group says is unconstitutional. It has also called on the British Government to stop subsidising Charles' £16.3m annual income through grants and tax breaks. During 2015 Republic launched a campaign and petition Take Back the Duchy to abolish the Duchy of Cornwall and transfer its land and assets to the Crown Estate. In December 2015 a freedom of information request by Republic revealed that Prince Charles had routine access to confidential government papers.
In advance of the 2011 wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, the tourist organisation VisitBritain said that the event would be good for tourism. In response Republic made a freedom of information request for VisitBritain documents which indicated that royal weddings had in the past had a negative effect on tourism. Republic held an alternative street party in London at the Royal Wedding, "celebrating democracy and people power rather than inherited privilege", along with other events across the UK's major cities. Republic's London event had initially been blocked by Camden Council.
Republic has claimed that the BBC displays bias in relation to its reporting of royal matters. The documentary The Diamond Queen was criticised for this: in a letter to the chairman of the BBC Trust, Chris Patten, Graham Smith, the organisation's Chief Executive, argued that the programme breached BBC guidelines on impartiality. In his letter, Smith claimed the series was subject to "distortions, half-truths and fabrications".
Legal context
Advocacy of the replacement of the monarchy with a republic has been an imprisonable offence in law. The Treason Felony Act 1848 prohibits the advocacy of a republic in print. The penalty for such advocacy, even if the republic is to be set up by peaceful means, is lifetime imprisonment. This Act remains in force in the United Kingdom. However, under the Human Rights Act 1998, the Law Lords have held that although the Treason Felony Act remains on the statute books it must be interpreted so as to be compatible with the Human Rights Act, and therefore no longer prohibits peaceful republican activity.
