THE Queen’s Crown Estate property empire last night said more than £1bn had been wiped from the value of its assets – the first decline since 1993.
The group, which dates back to 1066 and gives all its profits to the Treasury, saw £1.3bn knocked off the value of its estate value to £6bn, which left it with operating losses of £1.08bn for the year to end of March.
But the Crown Estate, which owns landmarks such as London’s Regent Street, said the property slump had not impacted on Treasury revenues.
The taxpayer will benefit from a net surplus of £226.5m, up 6.1% on the previous year after revenues lifted by 7.1%.
Roger Bright, chief executive of the Crown Estate, said the group had not been “immune” to the global crisis.
“We have had to contend with a number of difficult circumstances, including tenant defaults, which have affected our income stream,” he added.
