The Crown Estate, one of the largest property portfolios in the UK, is to transfer land at West Princes Street Gardens and the rights to fish for wild oysters and mussels to "suitable" Scottish organisations. It has also announced that it will restructure its outsourced property management function and retender for a new managing agent. The changes follow an inquiry into the Crown Estate by the Scottish Affairs Committee and further discussions by the Scottish Parliament as part of the Scotland Bill process.
Crown Estate Scottish Commissioner Gareth Baird, whose role will be "formalised" to lead all projects in Scotland, said that the changes showed that the Crown Estate "could have been more responsive to local communities in the past". However Richard Lochhead, the Scottish Government's Rural Affairs Secretary, said that the developments did not "go far enough".
"The Scottish Affairs Committee recommendations gave a clear rationale for the devolution of the Crown Estate in Scotland – a position that has also received cross-party support from the Scottish Parliament, that urged the UK Government to go even further – and it's deeply disappointing that UK ministers have chosen to ignore this," he said.
In a strongly-worded report on the Crown Estate in March, the Scottish Affairs Committee accused the organisation of an "accountability vacuum", particularly in relation to its control of Scotland's marine and coastal assets. It said that the only way to ensure the portfolio would benefit local communities was to "devolve as much of the responsibility" as possible to local communities.
Property law expert Nick Shenken of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said that the renewable energy sector would welcome the fact that a total overhaul is not planned.
"For renewables, this outcome is likely a reasonable one," said Shenken. "While a more serious restructure or devolution of the Crown Estate's function in Scotland may not necessarily have caused further difficulty, for an industry which is constantly dealing with consenting, regulatory and other uncertainty a preservation of the status quo which provides some continuity is probably no bad thing"
The Crown Estate manages a diverse portfolio in Scotland including five rural estates, mineral and salmon fishing rights, as well as about half of the foreshore and almost the entire seabed. Its coastal sites specialise in marine renewable energy and aquaculture, while its 37,000 hectares of rural property include nine Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Although the portfolio is owned by the Crown any revenue does not belong to the monarch; being instead surrendered to the Treasury in exchange for the Civil List grant.
As part of the reforms, the Crown Estate is to establish a new Scottish Management Board, to be chaired by the Scottish Commissioner. Two new senior operational roles with Scotland-wide responsibility have also been created to lead on Scottish projects – one on energy and infrastructure, and one on rural and coastal properties.
"We are serious about changing the way we do business in Scotland and the reforms we are announcing today acknowledge that we could have been more responsive to local communities in the past," Baird said. "They will ensure that in addition to delivering new inward investment, business and job opportunities in Scotland, our energy, rural and coastal businesses will be able to respond more effectively to the Scottish communities in which they operate."
However, Lochhead said that despite the changes there was still "no direct benefit" for Scotland from "the exploitation of our vast natural resources".
"Scottish communities must have a say in how the natural assets on their door step are managed and we will continue to press for change, so that this becomes a reality," he said.
