‘No comment’ on new Welsh Secretary’s wife’s business links with the Crown Estate
Martin Shipton
The Wales Office has refused to respond to questions about the fact that the wife of new Secretary of State for Wales Stephen Kinnock is a board member of a major renewable energy company that has done business with the Crown Estate.
Mr Kinnock’s wife Helle Thorning-Schmidt, a former Prime Minister of Denmark, is a director of Vestas Wind Systems, one of the biggest renewable energy firms in Europe that manufactures wind turbines.
Earlier this week we reported how Mr Kinnock had said after his appointment as Welsh Secretary by new Prime Minister Andgy Burnham that he wasn’t persuaded that the Senedd should have more powers devolved to it by the UK Government.
Among the extra powers being sought by the new Plaid Cymru Welsh Government is devolution of the Crown Estate’s revenues.
Plaid politicians have argued that the revenues, much of which come from coastal and offshore activities, would provide a valuable source of extra funds to be spent on public services in Wales.
The move was also supported by the previous Labour Welsh Government and remains that party’s policy, although many Welsh Labour MPs oppose devolving Crown Estate revenues, despite the fact that they are devolved to the Scottish Government.
Responding online to a Nation.Cymru story that mentioned Mr Kinnock’s lack of enthusiasm for devolving Crown Estate revenues, a reader stated: “Would this be the same Stephen Kinnock that is married to Helle Thorning-Schmidt, who just happens to be a director of Vestas Wind Systems? I wonder why Mr Kinnock is trying to prevent the Senedd from controlling vast areas of land and seabed held by the Crown Estate?”
When we asked the Wales Office to respond to the reader’s comment, a spokesperson for the UK Government now headed by Mr Kinnock, said: “What’s the question please? The only actual question in the below is ‘Would this be the same Stephen Kinnock that is married to Helle Thorning-Schmidt, who just happens to be a director of Vestas Wind Systems? The response to that one is ‘yes’ but I assume you want an answer to something else.”
We responded: “The implication of the reader’s comment is that the Secretary of State has a personal interest in not devolving Crown Estate revenues to the Welsh Government/Senedd because of his wife’s involvement in the renewable energy industry through her board membership at Vestas Wind Systems. So we’re looking for a response to that.”
The spokesperson responded: “We/Secretary of State won’t be making a response to the below-the-line comment you sent across.”
Manufacturing footprint
Vestas Wind Systems is expanding its UK manufacturing footprint in response to The Crown Estate’s major offshore seabed leasing initiatives, including the upcoming 6GW Offshore Wind Leasing Round.
Last week a new forum was launched to support the development of floating offshore wind (FLOW) in Wales and the South West of England.
As the deployment of offshore renewable energy accelerates around the world, floating wind farms are expected to play an increasingly significant role in the global energy mix, with the ability to be anchored in deeper waters than familiar fixed-base turbines.
The Celtic Sea Forum brings together Leasing Round 5 and FLOW test and demonstration developers with key partners, to help unlock the full potential of offshore wind in the Celtic Sea and ensure lasting benefits are delivered to communities across the region.
Its members include developers Blue Gem Wind, White Cross Offshore Windfarm, Gwynt Glas, Ocean Winds and Equinor, all of whom are actively developing floating offshore wind projects in the Celtic Sea. The group is chaired by The Crown Estate, with Marine Energy Wales and clean energy experts Regen bringing insights from both Wales and England.
Construction
While large-scale construction of Round 5 projects is not expected to start until the mid-2030s, important early learnings from the deployment of FLOW test and demonstration projects are critical, the group said. They will help to inform the design and delivery of large-scale generation capacity by reducing costs and building capacity over time. Early decisions around investment in ports, skills and supply chains will be critical in ensuring the region is ready.
The Celtic Sea is expected to play a key role in supporting the UK’s future offshore wind capacity, including through innovative floating wind technology, which enables turbines to be deployed in deeper waters.
Julia Rose, Head of Offshore Wind, The Crown Estate, said: “The Celtic Sea region is set to play a truly significant role in the UK’s clean energy transition and move the dial on our ambition to generate more homegrown energy. From innovation at Test & Demonstration sites to the scale of Leasing Round 5 and the onshore opportunities it will unlock, the Celtic Sea region’s journey to become a world-leading hub for FLOW has started and we’re delighted to support its future growth.”
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
Get more trusted Welsh news
Choose Nation.Cymru as a preferred source in Google News to see more of our journalism.
Bent as a nine bob note this country…
Ŵps. Kinnock must recuse himself. Else he’s tŵp.
Hardly twp – Master Stephen clearly knows *exactly* what he’s doing.
As always, the whole thing stinks. When will Wales decide enough is enough?
Didn’t take long, did it, for the insects to come crawling out of the woodwork. It would appear that Kinnock can be relied upon to put his wife’s interests above those of the country. Is this Burnham’s idea of a new broom sweeping clean?
It appears that anyone serving in government these days are running and manipulating the country to suit their own ends. No one else matters and they don’t even care if they get found out and suspended because next week they will be back in office in a better paid job than before. Getting caught is very rewarding. This government should be based in Sicilly. I would say that this particular case needs serious investigation, not by the government, but by the police and in the highest court in the land. This sort of corruption cannot possibly be overlooked and swept… Read more »
Shouldn’t this have been declared as an interest before accepting this post? This is reform, maybe even tory level sleaze.