Prince William and his position as the head of the Duchy of Cornwall may soon be affected by the Government’s vow to end a “draconian” rule. After a draft of the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill was published earlier this week, a plan to change what it described as “the draconian system of leasehold forfeiture” was laid out.
It further added that the plan is to “replace it with a new, fairer and more proportionate, lease enforcement scheme”. The Bill shared details about how it will “introduce a cap on ground rents of £250 a year,” which could affect Prince William if his Duchy leaseholders have been paying more.
The Duchy of Cornwall is a private estate established by King Edward III in 1337 for his son, Prince Edward, the Black Prince.
A charter at the time decreed that each future Duke of Cornwall would be the eldest surviving son of the monarch and the heir to the throne.
A report from last year confirmed that the prince received an incredible £22million for his second year’s income from the Duchy of Cornwall estate. The Integrated Annual Report revealed a distributable surplus of £22.9million ($30.9million) for the 2024-2025 financial year.
Looking to the future, according to the 2025 Integrated Impact Report, the Duchy of Cornwall is still focused on “becoming a net zero estate by the end of 2032.”
The report listed many of its major successes for 2025, including creating 400 hectares of new habitat, working closely with partners like the South West Peatland Partnership to restore and reinvigorate the peatlands of Dartmoor, and the efforts of its seven focus farms in innovating their farming practices, with one farm now achieving net zero status.
Work has also continued to address homelessness in Duchy communities, notably with St Petrocs in Nansledan, where building has now commenced on a project that will provide homes for individuals with wraparound care.
Last year, the Duchy invested over £10million in its community development projects, including at Nansledan and Poundbury. Further investments included over £2.8million in environmental initiatives, including net zero, future farming and woodland programmes.
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