HC Deb 19 May 2003 vol 405 cc569-70W
Mr. Carmichael

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue has been received by the Treasury from rents paid for use of the Crown Estate's seabed in each year since 1973; and how much the Crown Estate has invested in marine research in each of those years. [113935]

John Healey

The overall net revenue surplus of The Crown Estate is surrendered to the Exchequer. This payment is not subdivided by the individual constituents of the Estate's property holdings. Figures for the gross surpluses from the operations of the different components of The Crown Estate are set out in the organisation's annual report which is available in the Library of the House.

Since 1985 The Crown Estate has invested around £3.7 million in marine related research into areas such as fish farming and the environmental impact of dredging. A breakdown of the figures is as follows:

£000
1985 56
1986 67
1987 71
1988 75
1989 100
1990 124
1991 425
1992 192
1993 208
1994 189
1995 228
1996 287
1997 383
1998 284
1999 304
2000 303
2001 164
2002 241