Greenpeace threatens to sue crown estate for driving up cost of offshore wind
Greenpeace is threatening to sue King Charles’s property management company, accusing it of exploiting its monopoly ownership of the seabed.The environmental lobby group alleges the crown estate has driven up costs for wind power developers and boosted its own profits, as well as the royal household’s income, due to the “aggressive” way it auctions seabed rights.The crown estate, as the legal owner of the seabed around England, Wales and Northern Ireland, is responsible for auctioning offshore wind rights.It has benefited from the huge growth in the industry, commanding hefty option fees from renewable energy developers to secure areas of the seabed to build their windfarms.It made a £1.
1bn profit in its financial year ended in March, double its level just two years ago.Will McCallum, co-executive director at Greenpeace UK, said the estate should be “managing the seabed in the interest of the nation and the common good, not as an asset to be milked for profit and outrageous bonuses”.“We should leave no stone unturned in looking for solutions to lower energy bills that are causing misery to millions of households,” he said.“Given how crucial affordable bills and clean energy are to the government’s agenda, the chancellor should use her powers of direction to ask for an independent review of how these auctions are run.If the problem isn’t fixed before the next round, we may need to let a court decide whether or not what’s happening is lawful.
”Greenpeace argues the crown estate has a legal duty not to exploit its monopoly position as owner of the seabed around England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but that it is now in breach of this.The lobby group said it was concerned the crown estate was rationing supply of the seabed to protect high prices, and argued this could harm the development of offshore wind power in the UK.The crown estate has reportedly rejected Greenpeace’s claims, arguing the lobby group has misinterpreted the estate’s legal duties.About 12% of crown estate profits flow to the monarchy through the sovereign grant to fund its work.This was lowered from 25% in 2023 to offset the rise in profits from offshore wind projects.
The UK’s wind industry is at a critical juncture as the government plans to double onshore wind and quadruple offshore wind power capacity by the end of the decade.The crown estate, which also includes a portfolio of London properties and rural real estate, is worth £15bn.The property assets in London, which is concentrated around Regent Street and St James’s, are valued at £7.1bn.A spokesperson for the crown estate said: “Greenpeace has misunderstood the crown estate’s legal duties and leasing processes.
Option fees are not fixed by the crown estate.They are set by the developers through open, competitive auctions and reflect market appetite at the time.As our net revenue is returned to the Treasury, option fees help to ensure that taxpayers benefit from the requisite value from the development of our scarce and precious seabed resource.“The crown estate is accelerating offshore wind in line with government policy to move forward the energy transition at pace and improve energy security.”A Treasury spokesperson said the crown estate “operates independently and makes its own commercial decisions”, adding that “every penny of profit [that] goes to the Treasury … [helps] pay for vital public services like schools and hospitals”.
Luther Burrell claims speaking out about racist abuse ended rugby career
The former England player Luther Burrell has alleged he was effectively forced to retire after he spoke out about racist abuse he suffered from teammates.Burrell first alleged he had been the victim of racism while playing for Newcastle in 2022. Among the allegations he made at the time, Burrell claimed a teammate had referred to him as a “slave” and told him to apply sunscreen to his wrists and ankles as that’s “where your shackles were”.Speaking on Monday to the BBC, Burrell said the investigation that began after he made the claims caused his opportunities to dry up and that despite wanting to keep playing he has been unable to find a contract at a professional club for the past three years.“I have absolutely had to retire because of what’s gone on,” Burrell said
Australia targets offshore wagering threat with major sporting events on horizon
The threat of organised crime and the emergence of new offshore wagering havens in tiny jurisdictions such as Vanuatu will be a focus of Australia’s largest gathering of sports integrity professionals this week, as the nation prepares to host at least one major international sporting event each year in the run up to the 2032 Brisbane Games.Sport Integrity Australia (SIA) will bring together the codes, law enforcement agencies and wagering companies with the goal of establishing a major events taskforce on Wednesday, following a separate Victoria Police summit on Tuesday featuring 200-plus integrity experts.Although there has been cooperation for previous events such as the 2015 men’s Asian Cup and 2023 Women’s World Cup, the new arrangements reflect SIA’s new co-ordination role under sports integrity treaty the Macolin Convention, amid heightened awareness of the cross-border character of illegal wagering.James Moller, head of strategy and international policy at SIA, said it is “well understood” what to do when an alert arrives from local wagering partners around suspicious betting within domestic sport, but interstate and international collaboration can be less straightforward.“You could have athletes arriving in Western Australia, in New South Wales, in Queensland, you could have gambling happening in a different state or territory, and the sports betting environment is truly global,” Moller said
Smith-Schuster left with bloody nose after Lions-Chiefs ends in ‘childish’ brawl
The Detroit Lions’ matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs was expected to be feisty, but few thought it would end in a literal fight on Sunday night.The Chiefs had started the season poorly, by their high standards, and were coming off a painful loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars last week. But they dominated the Lions, who have suffered a string of injuries to their defense, on both sides of the ball to secure a 30-17 victory and move to 3-3 for the season.But the evening ended with players from both teams flooding the field after a fight started for the most petty of reasons. Lions safety Brian Branch refused to return a handshake from Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes after the game ended
Brydon Carse reveals Stokes and Wood are close to 100% and ‘raring to go’ for Ashes
Ben Stokes and Mark Wood are expected to be “raring to go” for the start of the Ashes next month, offering England a timely boost that sits in contrast to Australia’s ongoing concerns over the fitness of Pat Cummins.As the two seamers with prior experience of playing Test cricket in Australia, Stokes and Wood are central to England’s plans this winter. Stokes missed the fifth Test against India with a shoulder injury, however, while Wood sat out the entire English summer following knee surgery back in March.Things appear to be coming together, at least, with the pair recently training in the heated outdoor nets at Loughborough alongside their Durham teammate, Brydon Carse. While Cummins says he is “unlikely” to be ready for the first Test in Perth that starts on 21 November due to his lower back stress issue, England could have a full complement of seamers at their disposal
Pogacar rules cycling world with total pedal power after brushing off mid-season blues
A fifth successive Il Lombardia triumph completed another dominant season for the Slovenian, while on the women’s tour Pauline Ferrand-Prévot divided opinionTadej Pogacar’s command of world cycling now seems limitless. The man from Slovenia ended 2025 as he began it, dominating a coveted Italian classic, Il Lombardia, to win the “race of the falling leaves” for the fifth consecutive time.The 27-year-old started his European season by winning the Tuscan gravel race, Strade Bianche. He closed it having matched Italian icon Fausto Coppi’s record of five Lombardy wins and Eddy Merckx’s achievement of winning three “monument” races, the Tour de France and the world road race title in the same year.In late July, however, a weary Pogacar talked about early retirement and a sense of burnout, even as he took his fourth yellow jersey
Has Drake Maye ended the Patriots’ painful Tom Brady hangover?
Plenty of franchises spend decades looking for a star quarterback. New England appear to have found one after a few short years in the wildernessYou have to feel for the Browns, Jets, and Bears. Those franchises have spent decades in quarterback purgatory, rotating through prospects and placeholders. Meanwhile, after just five years of searching, the Patriots – the post-Tom Brady Patriots – appear to have found the guy.Five years
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