Crown Estate paying Prince Andrew’s rent while charging Welsh farmers to access their own land
Emily Price
The Crown Estate has been paying Prince Andrew’s rent whilst charging Welsh famers to access their own land.
Pressure has continued to grow on Prince Andrew as the controversy surrounding him and his Royal Lodge home shows no sign of abating.
The King has long been said to have tried to encourage his younger brother, who lives in the 30-room Windsor mansion with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, to move out, but Prince Andrew signed a watertight 75-year lease on the property in 2003.
Prince Andrew’s leasehold agreement revealed he paid £1 million for the lease and that since then he paid “one peppercorn” of rent “if demanded” per year.
He was also required to pay a further £7.5 million for refurbishments completed in 2005, according to a report by the National Audit Office.
The agreement also contains a clause that states the Crown Estate would have to pay Andrew around £558,000 if he gave up the lease.
There have been claims the prince’s “peppercorn” rent on the Crown Estate property in Windsor Great Park was concealed in a redacted version of his lease submitted to the Land Registry more than 20 years ago.
‘Disgrace’
Welsh Lib Dem David Chadwick branded the Crown Estates’ lease deal with Prince Andrew a “disgrace”.
The Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe MP said: “Welsh farmers that are being forced to pay the Crown Estate to access their own land will now effectively be paying Prince Andrew’s rent.”
The Crown Estate is a huge collection of lands and holdings in the UK belonging to the British monarch worth around £16 billion.
It is run as a business, independent of government, but its profits are delivered to the UK Treasury each year.
An annual payment is also made to the monarch in the form of the Sovereign Grant, currently set at 12% of the total.
Refused
It’s has become a controversial issue in Wales over recent years with all county councils officially expressing their support for responsibility of the Crown Estate assets to be handed to the Welsh Government.
Last month, we reported how a 79-year-old farmer from Powys had paid the Crown Estate around £3000 for access to one of his own fields via a deteriorated track that can only be accessed using a tractor.
David Hardwick told Nation.Cymru that the Crown Estate had begun chasing him for back payments after he took a stand and refused to pay anymore fees.
The Crown Estate said they were, “committed to reviewing our leasing and licensing arrangements to ensure they are proportionate, transparent, and deliver value for communities”.
Commenting, David Chadwick said: “Earlier this year, I highlighted how the Crown Estate is charging Welsh farmers hundreds of pounds a year just to access their own land, in addition to the Government refusing to devolve the profit from its renewable energy portfolio in Wales to Welsh communities.
“It’s a disgrace that Welsh farmers being forced to pay the Crown Estate to access their own land will now effectively be paying Prince Andrew’s rent.
“The Public Accounts Committee should urgently establish an inquiry into the Crown Estate and how it is managing taxpayers’ money.”
Evidence
Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey intervened in PMQs earlier this week, where he called on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to allow a select committee inquiry into Prince Andrew’s arrangements, taking evidence from everyone involved, including the Prince himself.
Prince Andrew has faced fresh scrutiny over his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein following the release of Virginia Giuffre’s new book.
Ms Giuffre took her own life earlier this year. Her posthumous memoir reveals further details of allegations about Prince Andrew – which he has always denied.
In his response, the Prime Minister affirmed the importance of proper scrutiny of the Crown Estate and said: “I certainly support that.”
The Liberal Democrats have argued that it is in the taxpayers’ interest to investigate how the Crown Estate is spending its revenue.
Davey has since written to the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, asking him to establish an inquiry into the use of Royal Lodge by Prince Andrew and summon him to give evidence.
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This assertion about Prince Andrew is not strictly true. It seems he paid 1 million up front plus a total of about 7 million£ for a lease. Leasehold property may or may not have a ground rent attached. In this case because he paid a lot to renovate it it seems he was granted a peppercorn rent. Apparently the location of the property and its poor condition made these terms acceptable to the Crown Estate. Whatever the other issues are about this tiresome man falsely claiming he owes rent is not appropriate. The Crown Estate is basically a property holding… Read more »
If a farmers has to pay £3000 to access his own land via a poorly maintained track then what is that? Is it not a poorly maintained track tax? The same way many people pay road tax for poorly maintained roads? Calling it “state income” doesn’t change the fact it’s money collected from ordinary people by very rich people for very little in return.
Crown Estates in Wales should be transferred to the Welsh Government. Otherwise we’re all still vassal peasants to the Monarchy.
Crown Estates in Wales should be RETURNED to the people not transferred. It was all stolen under force!!! The Crown Estates does not own bugger all that was not stolen.
It is very poor manners and a complete absence of sensibility when anyone refers to a 79 year old Welsh farmer as “tiresome” and yet seems to be quiet about the incredibly serious allegations against the Prince.
Are you having a laugh???!!! “He paid”!!!!!! This guy doesn’t pay for anything ……. WE PAY!!!! …… the stupid taxpayer pays every bloody penny this dysfunctional, useless, out-dated, thankless bunch of leeches spend. What the hell are they for?
If labour want any chance of preventing a whitewash at the next senedd election, they need to devolve crown estates to Wales. Headlines like this will not help them.
The whole tax issue needs to be resolved and the same for farmers, Monarchs and everybody else.
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/uk-news/how-much-money-charles-king-25026909?int_source=amp_continue_reading&int_medium=amp&int_campaign=continue_reading_button#amp-readmore-target notes that the finances of the Royal family are not subject to public scrutiny; the same is true for public organisations such as Network Rail who does not need to disclose the payments it makes for buying land from one of Charles holding companies.
This is why we need the devolution of the Crown Estate. Our farmers are paying through the nose for the millionaire lifestyle of an alledged abuser of the late Victoria Giuffre. Andrew has lived in his lad pad for 20+ years for virtually nothing. The purported cost per annum is about £804,000. And I put the blame fully on both anti-Welsh Conservatives and Labour, who over the months and years have flatly denied Wales & Welsh Government powers requested so that we could benefit from our own natural and coastal resource. What voters don’t realise is that Labour & Conservatives… Read more »
This is not that big of an issue to me. This is a private arrangement between landlord and tenant. It is up to the Landlord to set the terms and the costs to be paid. If the landlord is happy to lease the property at peppercorn value then that is within their prerogative. In the mean time, until the lease is up, a tenant has every right to maintain that contract. Else we’re condoning scummy landlord behavior up and down the country. Fwiw, this man has not been (to my knowledge) convicted of a crime, nor found by any civil… Read more »
By definition, the Welsh Crown Estate were seized by violent conquest. It it was the descendents of Llewelyn demanding oayment that’s one thing. This present scenario has been achieved illegally.
The evident moral of this apparently interminable sage is surely that in the 21st century we’d be better off disentangling the nation from this antique, decrepit and occasionally – as in the case of Andrew – rather disgusting institution.
No reason why – as in several former monarchies across Europe – the ex-royals shouldn’t be able to hang on the their titles if they want to do that. Just render them as private eccentricities, distinct from the nation and the state.
What a stubborn proportion of society, who refuse to admit how dreadful the royals are. What shame on so-called socialist movements in Wales who remain loyal to hypocritical manipulative organisations, of which there are many.
Quote: “The Crown Estate is a huge collection of lands and holdings in the UK belonging to the British monarch worth around £16 billion.” Get it right Emily. Change the words ‘belonging to’ to ‘stolen by’.