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In the United Kingdom, the Crown Estate is a semi-independent, incorporated public body which manages an extensive property portfolio. Historically, the Crown Estate properties were administered by the British monarch - hence the name. However, Crown Estate property is not the private property of the reigning monarch and is not administered on their behalf. Revenues or debts from the estate accrue to the UK Treasury. The Crown Estate is one of the largest property owners in the United Kingdom with a portfolio worth £8.1 billion, with urban properties valued at around £4 billion, and rural holdings valued at £1.049 billion; and an annual profit of £240.2 million, as at 31 March 2012.〔(),〕 The majority of the estate by value is urban, including a large number of properties in central London, but the estate also owns 144,000 ha (356,000 ac) of agricultural land and forest,〔http://www.thecrownestate.co.uk/about_us.htm〕 more than half of the UK's foreshore, and retains various other traditional holdings and rights, for example Ascot racecourse and Windsor Great Park. The Royal Family does own some private property. Balmoral Castle in Scotland, for example, was purchased by Prince Albert, consort to Queen Victoria, and is not part of the Crown Estate. In 1760 George III surrendered the right to govern in person, and as a result the monarch's entitlement to the revenue of the Crown Estate, which was transferred to HM Treasury. The agreement relieved the monarch of all responsibility for: : * the cost of the civil government : * the national debt accrued by previous monarchs, and : * his own personal debt. In return, he received an annual grant known as the Civil List. By tradition, each subsequent monarch has agreed to this formality as part of the ritual of his or her accession. However, from 1 April 2012, under the terms of the Sovereign Grant Act 2011 (SSG), the Civil List was abolished, and in the future each monarch will receive from the Treasury a grant indexed to a percentage of the Crown Estate's annual net revenue (currently set at 15%). This is intended to provide a long-term solution, and remove the politically sensitive issue of Parliament having to debate the Civil List allowance every 10 years. This change does not imply any legal right to the revenue of the Crown Estate itself on the reigning monarch, or change the nature of its ownership: it is simply a benchmark by which the SSG is set as a grant by Parliament. The Crown Estate is managed by an independent organisation headed by the Crown Estate Commissioners. The surplus revenue from the Estate is paid each year to HM Treasury. The Crown Estate is formally accountable to Parliament, to which it makes an annual report. ==History== 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「Crown Estate」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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