Until the 1960s, there was no legislation declaring crown ownership below the low watermark. But as North Sea oil and gas drilling began to take off, companies wanted to know who owned what. The Energy Act of 2004 passed by new labor allowed the crown estate to take part of the revenue from offshore wind and wave power electricity. And then George Osborne in 2011 introduced a new measure in which the crown estate was entitled to 25% of all its revenue from its commercial activities. So today, exploitation rights of the UK seabeds remain with the crown.
Madeleine Finlay speaks to the Guardian’s energy correspondent, Jillian Ambrose, about how offshore windfarms are generating record profits for the crown estate, and why King Charles has asked for the money to be used for the wider public good. She also hears from economist Guy Standing about how the seabed became a source of income for the crown and what it means for our view of the oceans as ‘commons’. Help support our independent journalism at
theguardian.com/sciencepod