Why Crown-owned holdings differ from government businesses

Is it harder for a government to privatise Crown-owned businesses than government-owned ones?

The example turns on ownership and administration: ministers control government enterprises, while Duchy holdings are separately administered. The broad phrase Crown-owned needs more precise definition.

Privatisation depends on who owns and administers the enterprise being sold. The Duchy of Lancaster is the example used here to distinguish royal holdings from businesses controlled by ministers. Government ownership gives ministers a different relationship to an enterprise from the relationship they have with separately administered royal assets. The passage's broad use of the term Crown property should therefore be treated cautiously, as it does not distinguish every category of royal property or income.