The Queen is to be given £369 million of taxpayers’ money to carry out a 10-year refit of Buckingham Palace.

The cash has been approved by the Prime Minister, Theresa May, and the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, and is expected to be rubber-stamped by Parliament in the next six months.

The move is likely to prove controversial, coming at a time when public sector services are facing cuts and pay freezes as a result of the Government’s austerity drive.