The Prince of Wales had previously occupied Chevening in Kent, a house that had been left to him by The 7th Earl Stanhope in 1967. The Prince of Wales found the journey from Chevening to Buckingham Palace inconvenient as a result of traffic congestion in South London, and it was also far away from Wales and the Duchy of Cornwall. The estate was also run by a board of trustees, appointed by the government which was seen as a disadvantage to any future changes The Prince of Wales wished to make. As £1 million of renovations had been made to Chevening before The Prince of Wales's occupancy, the purchase of Highgrove was criticised by Labour MP Reg Race, who said that it was "...bloody outrageous on a day that the Government are cutting social security benefits for millions of people". A spokesperson for the duchy said, "It is coincidental that this estate has a house on it which is suitable for the Prince of Wales. The Royal Family are rather short of residences and the prince only has a set of rooms at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle that he can use...when you are 31 you want a place of your own".