Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the Crown Estate on the steps it is taking to manage its assets in the public interest alongside profit maximisation when it is auctioning off plots of seabed to offshore wind developers.

The Crown Estate is an independent commercial business established by Parliament and returns its net profits to the Consolidated Fund. It has a statutory duty to secure best consideration while exercising good management.

HM Treasury Ministers and officials engage regularly with The Crown Estate.

The Crown Estate runs transparent, competitive processes in offshore wind leasing that treat bidders equally and balance commercial outcomes alongside its wider environmental, social and economic objectives.