Macron's Royal Dinner for King Charles III Throws French Exchequer Off the Balance

French President Emmanuel Macron's royal dinner for King Charles III burdens the state's exchequer. As per the presidential accounts annual report released on Monday an extravagant dinner thrown by the President's office in September 2023 costed €475,000 ($513,427). This resulted in a 14 per cent increase in state's expenditure as per the BBC report.

The 60-metre-long lavish dinner table which catered to nearly 150 guests included Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Actor Hugh Grant, Rolling Stone Mick Jagger and football manager Arsene Wenger. The dinner drew inspiration from the tastes of Louis XIV, offered lobster, crab dish, French poultry marinaded in champagne and a gratin of French cèpe mushrooms. The fancy dinner also had varieties of wines and vintage champagne accompanied by French macaron with lychee, rose sorbet and raspberry compote.

Following the report's release, the Court of Accounts (the Cour des Comptes ) raised concerns about the huge dinner spending which has left the state's fund hanging in alarming state along with exceeding their budget with €8.3 million. The report said, "significant efforts must be undertaken from 2024 in order to restore and sustain the financial balance of the presidency".

Macron's spending was part of presidential duties to strengthen diplomatic ties and showcase its soft power to the influential guests. The dinner hosted at Versailles last year was estimated to have cost €165,000 on catering and €40,000 on drinks.

PM Modi's July 2023 visit at the Louvre also found mention in the report, a huge sum of €412,000 on lavish banquet for him was incurred by the French President office.

Apart from food and drinks, a huge chunk was also spent on decoration and travel. The report criticised the inefficient travel planning done by President's office which amounted for €830,000 being lost as a result of cancellation of 12 non-refundable trips. The major loss of €500,000 due to President's cancelled trip to Germany in July 2023 also added an addition on President's office pocket.