PART 5

GENERAL

Interpretation

Definitions relating to the Crown
89
1
This section applies for the purposes of this Act.
2
“Crown land” means land in which there is a Crown interest or a Duchy interest.
3
“Crown interest” means an estate or interest which—
a
belongs to His Majesty in right of the Crown or in right of His private estates, or
b
belongs to a government department or is held in trust for His Majesty for the purposes of a government department.
4
“Duchy interest” means an estate or interest which—
a
belongs to His Majesty in right of the Duchy of Lancaster, or
b
belongs to the Duchy of Cornwall.
5
“Private interest”, in relation to Crown land, means an estate or interest which is neither a Crown interest nor a Duchy interest.
6
“Appropriate Crown authority”—
a
in relation to Crown land, means—
i
in the case of land that belongs to His Majesty in right of the Crown and forms part of the Crown Estate, the Crown Estate Commissioners;
ii
in relation to any other land that belongs to His Majesty in right of the Crown, the government department having the management of the land;
iii
in relation to land that belongs to His Majesty in right of His private estates, a person appointed by His Majesty in writing under the Royal Sign Manual or, if no such appointment is made, the Welsh Ministers;
iv
in relation to land that belongs to His Majesty in right of the Duchy of Lancaster, the Chancellor of the Duchy;
v
in relation to land that belongs to the Duchy of Cornwall, a person appointed by the Duke of Cornwall or by the possessor for the time being of the Duchy;
vi
in the case of land that belongs to a government department or is held in trust for His Majesty for the purposes of a government department, the department;
b
in any other case, the Treasury.
7
“The Crown” is to be treated as including the Senedd Commission.
8
Any question that arises about who is the appropriate Crown authority in relation to any land must be referred to the Treasury, whose decision is final.
9
In this section—
a
references to His Majesty’s private estates are to be read in accordance with section 1 of the Crown Private Estates Act 1862 (c. 37);
b
references to a government department include a Minister of the Crown and the Senedd Commission (and see section 85 of the Government of Wales Act 2006 (c. 32), which provides for references to a government department to include the Welsh Ministers, the First Minister and the Counsel General).
S. 89 in force at 12.9.2025, see s. 92(1)