Welsh Government has had no discussions with Treasury about devolution of Crown Estate

Emily Price

The Welsh Government has had no discussions with the UK Government about devolving the Crown Estate to Wales.

This is despite Labour in Wales consistently claiming it’s a firm commitment of theirs.

The youngest member of the House of Lords, Baroness Carmen Smith, submitted a written question to the Treasury asking for details of any discussions between the administrations in Cardiff Bay and Westminster regarding the issue.

Responding, Labour’s Lord Livermore said: “The UK Government has had no discussions with the Welsh Government on devolving the Crown Estate”.

He added: “The Crown Estate has played a significant role in attracting international investment into Wales to support the UK’s net zero target and will continue to do so through future leasing rounds for offshore wind developments, including floating wind projects in the Celtic Sea.

“They work closely with the Welsh Government and Natural Resources Wales in support of shared priorities, ensuring that these resources are sustainably managed for the long term.

“Introducing a new entity would fragment the market, complicate existing processes, and likely delay further development offshore, undermining investment in Welsh waters.”

The Plaid Cymru peer said the written answer was proof the Welsh Government isn’t “serious” about their claims of seeking the devolution of the Crown Estate to Wales.

Powers

Both the outgoing First Minister Vaughan Gething and Economy Secretary Jeremy Miles said they would back the devolution of the Crown Estate when they were running for the Welsh Labour leadership earlier this year.

Speaking in an interview in February, Mr Gething said: “If I am elected Welsh Labour leader and First Minister, responsibility for the Crown Estate is the most important set of new powers our future Welsh Labour Government would seek for the Senedd.”

Former First Minister Mark Drakeford previously said it could boost the country’s aspirations to become a world leader in renewable energy.

The Crown Estate owns the vast majority of Britain’s seabed, stretching up to 12 nautical miles from the mainland, and leases part of it to wind farm operators.

Profits are paid directly to the Treasury, which then hands on a portion of the money to the monarchy, known as the Sovereign Grant, which supports the official duties of the royal family.

Last year, Nation.Cymru obtained details of the staggering breakdown of Crown Estate assets in Wales.

The group values amounted to a combined worth of £853,030,454.

Plaid Cymru says Wales’ natural resources should be controlled by Wales for the benefit of the communities of Wales – not Westminster.

The party has long called for an arrangement similar to Scotland which would give Wales a direct say in how the profits from new floating wind farms planned off the Welsh coast would be spent.

The estate’s Scottish assets were devolved to Scotland in 2016, and its revenue now goes to the Scottish Government.

‘Vital’

Baroness Smith said: “Keir Starmer promised a ‘reset’ of the UK Government’s relationship with the devolved governments, yet the response of his government to my written question makes clear that what we’re seeing is more of the same.

“Powers over the Crown Estate have been devolved to Scotland since 2017, while Wales has been left voiceless over how profits from renewable energy projects on the Welsh Crown Estate would be spent.

“These powers are vital if we are to ensure that profits made from leasing land for energy projects are retained here in Wales. Plaid Cymru is clear that these profits should be used to address the inequality and poverty facing communities in Wales.”

We contacted incoming First Minister Eluned Morgan and asked whether she had plans to discuss the devolution of the Crown Estate to Wales with the new Labour UK Government.

We did not receive a response.

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “Our Programme for Government and its commitment to devolving the Crown Estate remains unchanged.

“We want to ensure the Crown Estate works for Wales and we welcome the opportunity to collaborate with the new UK Government on the proposals announced in the King’s Speech.

“Our officials have held initial discussions with their UK Government counterparts on the constitutional reform agenda. These will continue to ensure we maximise the opportunities and benefits for Wales.”