Has the Queen left London forever?
'Up to 250 royal staff are offered voluntary redundancy'
amid doubts monarch will return to Buckingham Palace - as Covid takes £18m toll on her finances
01:53 07 Jul 2020, updated 18:27 08 Jul 2020
Hundreds of royal staff could lose their jobs this month amid doubts over the Queen's return to London, as Buckingham Palace feels the impact of the coronavirus crisis.
As many as 250 workers have reportedly been offered voluntary redundancy after Covid-19 created an £18 million black hole in Her Majesty's finances.
And the monarch herself is expected to head not to the palace, but back to Windsor Castle, where she has spent the entirety of the lockdown, after her summer holiday in Balmoral, according to the Telegraph.
It raises questions over whether she may ever return to the capital, though royal aides insist she will resume duties there 'when appropriate in accordance with the Government advice'.
The Queen, 94, and Prince Philip, 99, have been cared for at Windsor since lockdown started in mid-March by a devoted team of staff who provide a protective shield - dubbed 'HMS Bubble' - around them.
The staff are split into two groups of 12 who work away from their families on a 'three weeks on, three weeks off' basis, the Sun reported.
Royal staff, including chefs, cleaners and officials, spend two weeks at home and a third week in quarantine during their time away from Windsor, it was said.
Under strict measures to protect the monarch, each employee is then tested for Covid-19 and has their temperature taken before they can begin another three-week rotation.
Those involved in the Queen's security operation include her favourite page Paul Whybrew – with whom she is so comfortable that they often watch TV together, and who co-starred in her James Bond skit for the London Olympics Opening Ceremony.
From Windsor Castle, the Queen delivered two rare televised addresses to the nation just weeks apart.
She reassured some 23 million viewers in early April that the virus would be overcome, telling those in isolation: 'We will meet again.'
In another speech to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day, she told how the message at the end of the war in Europe was 'never give up, never despair'.
However, suggestions of her not returning to the palace has coincided with reports that up to 250 royal staff could face the axe, with tourism income well down this year as a result of the global pandemic.
Buckingham Palace has been approached for comment on the Queen's future.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8496349/amp/Hundreds-royal-staff-axed-250-offered-voluntary-redundancy.html