白金汉宫翻修耗资1.5亿英镑，英女王或搬家

 　　It has been her London home for nearly 90 years, but the Queen may have to move out of Buckingham Palace for a year under plans to carry out ?150million-worth of urgent repairs.

　　女王在伦敦的白金汉宫已经住了近90年，但为了配合为期一年、耗资1.5亿英镑的紧急翻新工程，女王可能将被迫搬家。

　　If she leaves, it will be the first time a monarch¹ has been forced out since Queen Victoria designated it as an official residence in 1837.

　　如果女王迁出白金汉宫，她将成为从1837年维多利亚女王指定这为官方住所后，第一位被迫搬出的君主。

　　Surveyors called in to assess the royal residence say it needs a major top-to-toe overhaul² after years of neglect.

　　被召集来的测量员进行评估后认为，这所王室住宅年久失修，需要全面翻修。

　　They have suggested that the cheapest option would be to move out the sovereign and all her 426 staff in one go to so all the work can be done at once.

　　他们建言，最经济的方式就是让女王及其426位职员一次性全部迁出王宫，那么他们就能一次性完工。

　　白金汉宫翻修耗资1.5亿英镑，英女王或搬家

　　Royal sources on June 22 confirmed that moving the Queen and Prince Philip out of the palace is one choice being considered. They would live at Windsor Castle, their weekend home, although it is unclear how long this would be for.

　　英国王室6月22日证实，他们正在考虑让女王和菲利普王子迁出王宫。他们会移居到周末度假屋温莎堡。但尚未确定他们会在那儿住多久。

　　The Queen currently spends around three days a week working at Buckingham Palace, spending an increasing amount of time at Windsor Castle where she conducts royal engagements with greater frequency.

　　目前，女王每周会在白金汉宫工作三天，在温莎堡逗留的时间越来越长，在那里举行王室活动的次数也越来越多。

　　Although parts of the palace suffered damage during the Second World War, even the Blitz did not force the Royal Family to move out.

　　尽管在二战期间白金汉宫遭到部分毁坏，即便发生闪电战，王室成员也未迁出。

　　Details of the plan emerged on June 22 following the publication of the Queen's annual report into her work as head of state and accounts.

　　搬迁计划的细节于6月22日公布。此前，女王公开了年度工作报告和财产报告。

　　Last year she received ?37.9million from taxpayers³ through the Sovereign Grant but because of a jump in profits from the Crown Estate from which it is taken, she will see her income rise by 6.7 per cent in 2016/17 to almost ?43million.

　　去年，通过主权拨款，女王从纳税人手中得到了3790万英镑。皇家财产局的部分利益作为主权拨款补贴给皇室，由于其利润上涨，2016年至2017年，女王的收入将增加6.7%，总计约4300万英镑。

　　Aides maintain that the monarchy⁴ still offers 'excellent' value for money, costing the country 56p per person each year.

　　女王助理始终认为，尽管国民每人每年为王室花费56英镑，王室的存在仍然“物超所值”。

　　They have long complained, however, that government underfunding over more than 20 years has forced them to 'make do and mend', leading to a huge backlog⁵ of urgent repairs at royal residences, particularly Buckingham Palace.

　　尽管如此，他们一直抱怨，20多年来，政府对王室的拨款不足，他们迫不得已“小修小补将就一下”，导致多所王室居所的急修工作一直积压着，尤其是白金汉宫。

　　Members of staff have been known to catch rain in buckets to stop priceless works of art and antiques from being destroyed by its leaky roofs.

　　据说，白金汉宫屋顶漏雨，王室职员要在雨天放桶接水，以防贵重艺术品和古董被损坏。

　　Most of the state rooms have not been decorated since the Queen came to the throne 60 years ago, while large parts of the building are in such a state of disrepair that Princess Anne was almost hit by falling masonry⁶ a few years ago.

　　伊丽莎白女王掌权60年来，大部分的房间都未经装修。而宫殿大部分地方都失修已久，前几年安妮公主还差点被掉下来的砖瓦砸伤。

　　And the palace's ancient electrics and plumbing⁷ systems both need a top-to-toe overhaul.

　　宫殿里古老的电力系统和水管也需要全面整修。

　　Officials are now seriously exploring the possibility that the Queen and her staff will be forced to move out, either all at once, or in stages with the work being done around them.

　　官员们现在非常认真地考虑女王及其职员将被迫迁出的事情，有可能一次性全部迁出，有可能在翻修工程进行时还继续住在这里。

　　As well as having to hold garden parties in a different location, any major closure of the palace could force its closure to the public for at least one summer season, meaning a huge loss of income for the Royal Collection.

　　同时还要换个地点举办露天招待会，一旦遇到重大施工封锁，宫殿将至少一个夏季不对公众开放，这意味着英国皇家典藏会损失一大笔收入。

　　Independent assessors say that 40 per cent of the royal estate – which includes Windsor Castle, St James's Palace and other residences – is in a sub-standard condition.

　　独立评估者称，40%的王室居所——包括温莎堡，圣詹姆斯宫等其他居所——都有待修整。

　　Vocabulary

　　overhaul: 全面检修

　　Blitz: 闪电战

　　make do and mend: (不买新的而把旧的)修修补补将就过去

　　backlog: 积压待办的事务

　　masonry: 砖石建筑

1 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。

2 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

3 taxpayers   

纳税人，纳税的机构( taxpayer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Finance for education comes from taxpayers. 教育经费来自纳税人。
• She was declaiming against the waste of the taxpayers' money. 她慷慨陈词猛烈抨击对纳税人金钱的浪费。

4 monarchy   

n.君主，最高统治者；君主政体，君主国

参考例句：

• The monarchy in England plays an important role in British culture.英格兰的君主政体在英国文化中起重要作用。
• The power of the monarchy in Britain today is more symbolical than real.今日英国君主的权力多为象徵性的，无甚实际意义。

5 backlog   

n.积压未办之事

参考例句：

• It will take a month to clear the backlog of work.要花一个月的时间才能清理完积压的工作。
• Investment is needed to reduce the backlog of repairs.需要投资来減轻积压的维修工作。

6 masonry   

n.砖土建筑；砖石

参考例句：

• Masonry is a careful skill.砖石工艺是一种精心的技艺。
• The masonry of the old building began to crumble.旧楼房的砖石结构开始崩落。

7 plumbing   

n.水管装置；水暖工的工作；管道工程v.用铅锤测量（plumb的现在分词）；探究

参考例句：

• She spent her life plumbing the mysteries of the human psyche. 她毕生探索人类心灵的奥秘。
• They're going to have to put in new plumbing. 他们将需要安装新的水管。 来自《简明英汉词典》