Rhondda councillors asked to support calls for devolution of Crown Estate to Wales

Anthony Lewis Local Democracy Reporter

Councillors in Rhondda Cynon Taf are being asked to support calls for the devolution of The Crown Estate to Wales.

A Plaid Cymru notice of motion to full council on Wednesday, March 5, says that any profits generated by the Crown Estate, on Welsh lands and waters, should remain in Wales, for the benefit of residents and communities, that responsibility for the Crown Estate assets and revenue in Wales should be devolved to the Welsh Government and that the Welsh Government should accept management of the Crown Estate in Wales for the benefit of the people of Wales.

It calls on the council to ask the leader to write to the Welsh Government outlining its support to the campaign and asks that Welsh Government persuades the UK Government to devolve the assets and revenue of the Crown Estates in Wales as a matter of urgency.

It also calls on the council to ask that the leader write to the UK Prime Minister asking that the UK Government devolves the assets and revenue of the Crown Estates in Wales to the Welsh Government as a matter of urgency.

Welsh land

The Crown Estate has a £16 billion property portfolio across the UK and is an independent company returning profits to the Treasury and, since 2011, it has also helped to fund the monarchy.

In the 2023-24 financial year, the estate announced a record £1.1 billion net revenue profit which was £658.1 million higher than the previous year.

It is estimated that the estate owns 65% of Wales’ foreshore and riverbeds, and more than 50,000 acres of land.

A 2023 breakdown of Crown Estate assets in Wales showed that the group values amounted to a combined worth of £853m

The notice of motion says: “Across Wales there is a growing campaign calling for management of the Crown Estate and its assets in Wales to be devolved to the Welsh Government.

“The campaign argues that Wales should benefit directly from the profits of renewable energy, and that this money could be used to address the poverty and inequality in communities across Wales.

“A poll in 2023 showed that 75% of the population of Wales were in favour of
taking control of the assets of the Crown estate rather than the profits going to the Treasury and the Crown.

Parity

Management of the Crown Estate was devolved to Scotland in 2017, which means that the revenue is returned to Edinburgh rather than Westminster.

At the end of 2023, the Scottish Crown Estate had generated £103.6 million for the Scottish government’s purse and the value of the Scottish estate also rose from £568.2 million to £653.1 million that year.

The Plaid motion says: “Wales should be afforded the same opportunities as Scotland, particularly at a time when the Crown Estate is announcing record net profits, and economic inequality continues in Wales. Projected earnings in Wales could be £42m.

“All local authorities across Wales are under huge financial pressures and placing the Crown Estate in the hands of Wales would be a significant step to address the years of lack of investment in our local government.

“Welsh Labour has consistently claimed it has a firm commitment to devolving the Crown Estate to Wales. However, the new UK government confirmed in August last year that it had not had discussions with the Welsh government about devolving the crown estate to Wales.”