King Charles’s private estate, the Duchy of Lancaster, has generated over £1 million from selling land associated with a now-cancelled segment of the High-Speed 2 (HS2) rail project. According to documents, the Duchy received payments totaling £1,132,400 for land near a proposed hub station in Crewe, Cheshire, despite the Duchy’s claims of being “completely self-financing and does not rely on taxpayers’ money.”
The Duchy, which has provided income to reigning monarchs since medieval times, acquired a 1,400-hectare (3,450-acre) estate surrounding the Jacobean mansion of Crewe Hall in 1936. In recent years, portions of this land have been sold to facilitate new roads and housing developments. As a landowner, the Duchy benefits from exemptions from most business taxes, allowing it to maximize profits from such transactions.
HS2 was designed to connect Crewe to London in under an hour while also enhancing services to Birmingham and Manchester. The project was expected to bring an additional 6.3 million passengers to Crewe by 2036, potentially boosting the local economy by £750 million annually. To prepare for the hub station, officials planned significant infrastructure upgrades, with land acquisition from the Duchy being a critical component.
Land Registry documents indicate that the UK Department for Transport purchased several plots of land adjacent to the A500 road in 2012 as part of the HS2 development plans, including a plot from the Duchy for £318,000. However, plans for a dual carriageway along the A500 were abandoned after it was announced that HS2 would terminate in Birmingham rather than continue to Crewe. The local authority, Cheshire East Council, described the cancellation of the northern phase of HS2 as a “devastating blow” that left it nearing bankruptcy. The council recently accepted a funding package of £25.3 million from the central government.
The Duchy of Lancaster’s profits increased significantly during the reign of the late Queen Elizabeth II, who oversaw transactions that often remained undisclosed to Parliament. Upon her passing in 2022, King Charles inherited the Duchy without incurring inheritance tax, benefiting from its status as a crown body. The Duchy is also exempt from corporation tax and capital gains tax, generating an income of £26.5 million last year. While King Charles reportedly pays some income tax on this revenue, he is not required to disclose the exact amounts.
In response to criticism regarding its financial dealings with public bodies, the Duchy announced in July 2023 that it would “actively review” its policies. This followed an investigation by Channel 4 Dispatches and the Sunday Times that revealed various business agreements with taxpayer-funded organisations, including a £11.4 million contract with an NHS trust for ambulance parking facilities located on Duchy land in south London.
As HS2 plans unfolded, Crewe emerged as a preferred location for the north-west hub station. Local authorities planned road improvements to enhance access to the station, which they deemed essential for realizing HS2’s economic potential. This included a new road, named after local figure David Whitby, who was involved in the Great Train Robbery of 1963. The road improvements aimed to provide better connectivity as the HS2 project progressed.
In 2018, Cheshire East Council undertook further upgrades to the Crewe Green roundabout near the station, widening junctions to facilitate traffic flow from various directions. A council document highlighted that these updates were necessary to ensure “network resilience” prior to the anticipated arrival of the HS2 hub.
In a significant policy shift, the UK government, led by former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, announced at the 2023 Conservative Party Conference that the northern phase of HS2 would be scrapped, citing costs that had soared to approximately £71 billion. The council’s response underscored the severe financial implications of this decision, indicating a critical need for impending government support.
A spokesperson for the Duchy of Lancaster stated, “As with any landowner, the acquisition and disposal of property assets forms part of routine activities.” The spokesperson declined to comment on specific transactions but emphasized that any payments would be reinvested back into the Duchy estate rather than distributed as income to the monarch.
The Duchy of Lancaster remains a significant player in land ownership and development, with ongoing scrutiny regarding its financial relationships with public entities. As investigations continue into its dealings, the impact of HS2’s cancellation on local economies and infrastructure development remains a pressing concern.
