THE LAND and sea assets in Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion are amongst the most lucrative of those owned by the Crown Estate.
In 2023, they helped accumulate a Welsh financial handover totalling £853m, resulting in a record net profit to the UK public finance coffers of £1.1billion. This represented a marked increase in Wales’ contribution, compared to its 2007 asset value of just £21.1m.
The escalation is being driven by the rising demand for renewable energy projects, and with the offshore investments that are currently taking place in seabed of south Pembrokeshire, Wales’ contribution to the Crown Estate looks set to soar even further
But how much of this contribution finds its way back to Wales? The answer, sadly, appears scant.
Instead of finding their way back to the Welsh public purse, profits generated from Wales’ green wealth are being distributed to the HM Treasury and the monarch’s Sovereign Grant, which funds a handful of senior members of the Royal family. In 2023-24, the sovereign grant amounted to £86.3m.
Now, in a bid to ensure greater transparency and a fairer financial management, pressure is being put on the Government to allow the Crown Estate to be devolved to Wales, putting it on equal footing with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
“The value of the Crown Estate in Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion is hugely significant,” commented Ben Lake, MP for Ceredigion and Preseli.
“The Crown Estate owns 65% of Wales’s foreshore and riverbeds, and more than 50,000 acres of land. And a considerable amount of this lies in the foreshores around south Pembrokeshire and the more rural areas of Ceredigion.
“Welsh County Councils, including Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion, are having to make payments to the Crown in leasing fees and in 2023, this sum was nearly £300.000 Yet this is happening at a time when local services in Wales are under severe pressure. It doesn’t strike me as fair that we have these significant natural assets which are generating significant amounts of profit, yet they’re not returning back to Wales.
“The UK government says it’s spending money here, but when it comes to the provision of health, education and social services, Wales only gets a Barnett formula of roughly just under 5%.”
In 2024, Scotland, which devolved from the Crown Estate in 2017, saw more than £100m enter its coffers as a result of its offshore energy.
“And the potential for Wales is just as significant,” said Ben Lake. “Engineers and experts are all pointing to the fact that the regeneration of renewable energy in Wales is going to be big and over the next ten years, the waters around Wales are going to see some of the biggest developments in offshore wind. But unless the Crown Estate is devolved, Wales is going to be severely shortchanged.”
The Crown Estate owns more than £603m of land in Wales which includes:
65% of Wales’ coast and riverbeds;
- The seabed which extends up to 12 miles out to sea;
- 50,000 acres of land;
- 250,000 acres of mineral deposits and
- All gold and silver deposits.
Last week Westminster blocked the transfer of Crown Estate management to the Welsh Government by voting down an amendment tabled by Plaid Cymru to the Crown Estate Bill.
The Liberal Democrats also tabled an amendment calling for Crown Estate assets to be handed to Wales. But both amendments were blocked by Labour MPs.
The stance contradicted recent comments from Wales’ First Minister, Baroness Eluned Morgan, who said she was “fighting very hard” for more control.
The Bill is expected to return to the House of Commons later this month for further debate and a bid to enforce a vote on the issue,
“Even if we’re able to get a small percentage of what Scotland is generating, Wales will be able to start investing in its public services given the acute pressures that are currently being placed on the NHS and the county councils,” concluded Ben Lake. “This will go a long way to alleviate the pressures they’re under.
“And further down the line, it’s possible that Wales could then start considering its own Wealth Fund, similar to what has happened in Norway as a result of its oil and gas licensing. Through its profits and interest, the Norwegian Wealth Fund has become one of the largest in the world. In 2024 it generated $220 billion to subsidise a significant amount into public services
“And Wales is no different.
“It’s now time for the money that’s being generated from Wales’ natural assets to come back for the benefit of the people who live here.”
