This is a rewrite of a piece originally written in 2015 and long overdue given the number of developments in this area since then.
The Crown Estate in Wales
In Welsh terms, the Crown Estate’s assets were worth £603million in 2020-21, generating a net profit of £8.7million3.
The value of the Crown Estate’s assets in Wales jumped massively between 2020 and 2021 (by 522%) due to a new round of offshore renewables leasing.
As the Crown Estate “owns” the UK’s territorial sea bed and most of the foreshore, it’s a major player in the offshore renewables industry including wind farms and proposed tidal energy schemes.
The Crown Estate is also involved in marine aggregates (dredging) in the Bristol Channel and the Irish Sea.
In terms of actual physical property and land, the Crown Estate doesn’t own that much in Wales anymore besides historical estates like Tintern Abbey (managed by Cadw) and other historical “rights” such as Welsh gold.
One of their largest property assets – the Morfa Shopping Park in Swansea – was sold in an £85.3million deal in 2016. As a result, the Crown Estate generates hardly any “on land” income in Wales. As of 2020-21, 99.6% of the Crown Estate’s property value in Wales was tied up in marine renewables and associated infrastructure.
The Crown Estate & Devolution
All of this puts the Crown Estate in an awkward position concerning Wales as the Crown Estate is a reserved matter for the UK Parliament & Government4. Although devolution of the Crown Estate was recommended as part of the Silk II Commission, it was taken off the table in the St. David’s Day agreement.
Some of the devolved areas impacted by the Crown Estate’s activities include agriculture, fisheries, economic development, planning and energy/sustainable development.
There’s also an arcane ritual in the Senedd under its Standing Orders where ministers have to announce if they have the consent of the monarch and/or Duke of Cornwall where legislation impacts their interests.
As Scotland has a separate legal system and different property laws, the Crown Estate has always been subject to legislation from the Scottish Parliament and been administered differently – but revenues still went to the UK Treasury.
Following the full devolution of the Crown Estate to Scotland via the Scotland Act 2016, all administrative responsibility has passed to the Crown Estate Scotland public corporation, with net profits returned to the Scottish Government. The monarch still, however, remains the legal owner of the assets. More on this later.
The situation in Wales has, as we’ve come to expect, become an anomaly.
Memorandums of understanding exist between the Crown Estate and organisations like Natural Resources Wales5.
However, given the importance of the Crown Estate’s assets in meeting Wales’ climate change and renewable energy goals, calls for the full devolution of the Crown Estate (in line with Scotland) have grown – not just from the usual suspects (Plaid Cymru and other nationalists) but also Welsh Government ministers and members of the public.
As of posting, more than 9,300 people have signed a petition calling for the Crown Estate to be devolved to Wales. The UK Government has, to date, flatly rejected the idea.
3: Crown Estate, Wales Highlights 2020. Available at: https://www.thecrownestate.co.uk/media/3872/wales-highlights-2021-final.pdf
4: Government of Wales Act 2006, Schedule 7A, Part 1, Paragraphs 2-4
5: Memorandum of Understanding between The Crown Estate and Natural Resources Wales (December 2014). Available at: https://www.thecrownestate.co.uk/media/2738/mou-national-resources-wales.pdf
