Times are hard and David Cameron has to set an example – so he is turning No 10 into a commercial operation, reports UK newspaper Daily Mail.
But the move is unlikely to make much of a dent in the national debt.
Britain's prime minister is apparently offering firms the opportunity to convert the Downing Street gift shop into a public business. The profits will be split between the firm and the taxpayer.
The precedent was set by Queen Elizabeth II, who earlier opened a gift shop at Buckingham Palace. US President Barack Obama also has an online store.
Goods on sale – all emblazoned with the Downing Street crest – include a teddy bear (£12), a fridge magnet (£3.25), a white apron (£10.25), oven gloves (£8.65) and prints of watercolours painted by the Prince of Wales, which sell for £20, reports Daily Mail.
Currently the shop is open only to the No. 10 staff members.
Cameron is serious about squeezing every possible saving from Whitehall and sees this idea as a way of raising revenue to set against costs, the paper said.
A Government spokesman was quoted by the daily as saying that new products would be devised for the operation and it would include a filmed tour of No 10 on DVD.