Queen’s funeral ‘money well spent’, says minister, as final costs still being added up

Culture secretary says any criticism of price tag is ‘preposterous’

The Queen’s coffin lying-in-state at Westminster Hall (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

The cost of the Queen's funeral and lying-in-state was "money well spent", the culture secretary has said.

Speaking the morning after the funeral Michel Donelan however was unable to say how much the events had cost taxpayers.

"I'm not sure of the exact costings but as I say, I think the British public would argue that that was money well spent," she told Sky News when pressed on the figure.

"You saw so many thousands out there and I don't think anybody can suggest that our late monarch didn't deserve that send-off, given the duty and the selfless service that she committed to over 70 years."

Ms Donelan said it would be "downright preposterous" to suggest that state funding for the occasion was not warranted.

"It was great sense of the community coming together. I always think of our late monarch as the glue that brought society together," she added.

The funeral will be funded from general taxation, despite the Queen's personal fortune of hundreds of millions of pounds – which will be exempt from inheritance tax.

In 2002 the Queen Mother’s funeral cost an estimated £5 million including arrangement for the lying-in-state and security, according to a House of Commons report.

The state funding for the funeral attracted comment abroad in recent days, including in the US's New York Times newspaper, which contrasted the price tag with the rising cost of living.

Ms Donelan described the queue for Westminster Hall as "phenomenal" and paid tribute to the volunteers who helped manage and support the proceedings.

"There's no dress rehearsal is there for this kind of scenario. It has been in the plans for years, but obviously we stress-tested everything and worked with community groups," she told BBC Breakfast.