News
28
July 4, 2025 • Twitter.com/easterneye
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by AMIT ROY
THE National Trust, which is seeking to
broaden its appeal to British Asians, is
marking its 130th anniversary with a re
newed commitment to restoring nature
and widening access under a 10-year
strategy.
Its director-general, Hilary McGrady,
also aims to inspire more people to get
involved in caring for the country’s natu
ral resources.
The National Trust was founded in
1895 by three Victorian philanthropists –
Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Can
on Hardwicke Rawnsley – to “promote
the permanent preservation for the ben
efit of the nation of lands and tenements
(including buildings) of beauty or historic
interest”. With more than “5.38 million
members, 11,000 staff and 61,000 volun
teers, it is now Europe’s largest conserva
tion charity, caring for over 250,000 hec
tares of farmland, 890 miles of coastline
and 500 historic properties, gardens and
nature reserves, for everyone, for ever”.
It wants more British Asians to apply
for jobs with the Trust or offer to become
volunteers. Many of its historic properties
have Indian connections.
McGrady, who has been with the Trust
for 20 years, set out the organisation’s
aims: “For 130 years, the National Trust
has responded to the crises and chal
lenges of the time. Today, nature is de
clining before our eyes and climate
change is threatening homes and habitats
on a colossal scale. Meanwhile, millions
of people can’t enjoy the benefits that
green space and heritage bring.
“So, we will ramp up our work to re
store nature, both on our own land and
beyond our boundaries. We’ll work to
end inequality of access to green space
and cultural heritage. And we will inspire
millions more people to take action to
protect the things we all need to thrive.
“Our charity’s founders were passion
ate campaigners who recognised the
threats to our natural and cultural herit
age, and, against the odds, did something
about it. That same boldness is needed
today. The Trust is uniquely placed to do
something about these challenges and it’s
why we are setting ourselves these ambi
tious but much-needed goals.”
At a recent reception to mark the
Trust’s 130th birthday in College Gardens,
Westminster, the director general asked
guests to close their eyes and imagine
their favourite idyllic locations.
“You need to know the National Trust
is here to look after it, to support it, to
stand up for it, to stand up for the right for
everyone to have the kind of access to the
beauty and the nature that you’ve been
thinking about,” McGrady said.
She was “incredibly proud” of what the
Trust had achieved “from the very days
where there was just a glint in Octavia’s
eyes. But I also want you to think about the
legacy – not just what we’ve achieved so
far, but the legacy we want to leave for our
future, for your children, your children’s
children, and far beyond,” she added.
She pointed out: “Our historic fabric in
our towns and our cities is under massive
threat, because we’ve no money to be
able to upkeep them. Local authorities
are under real pressure. People living in
cities – 40 per cent of them – have no ac
cess to green or blue space, and so that
connectedness that is so vital for the care
of nature is being broken.
“And, of course, climate change is af
fecting everybody’s life – and anyone who
doesn’t think it, please just look at the
flooding, look at the heat damage, look at
our landscapes. These are new challeng
es, and the Trust is going to step up and
face them again.”
She declared: “We’re going to restore
nature. We’re not just going to stop the
decline. We’re going to restore it.”
McGrady said: “We’re going to move
more and more into cities.” “We’ve just
done that at Castlefield,” she added, refer
ring to the transformation of a Victorian-
era steel viaduct transformed into a green
“sky garden” in the heart of Manchester.
She also spoke about a landscape pro
ject in Belfast: “We’ve just acquired an
amazing bit of divis on the edge of Belfast
that will make a massive difference to the
north of the city.”
She paid tribute to the people who had
built the organisation over 130 years: “I
stand on the shoulders of many, many of
those giants, and they’re the people who
built an institution that is much loved,
that is much respected and is really trust
ed, which in this day and age, is a rare and
a precious thing I will fight to protect to
the death.”
She concluded: “I hope that Octavia – if
she’s looking down on us now – will be
pleased to see the spirit of the National
Trust remains and that we remain for
everyone, forever.”
McGrady was followed by Steve Reed,
secretary of state for the environment,
food and rural affairs, who waved his
National Trust membership card: “We
all have a special place we love to visit.
For me, it’s Sissinghurst Castle in Kent.
I love the beautiful gardens designed by
the writer and poet Vita Sackville-West
and her husband Harold Nicolson, which
remain popular today.”
He expressed the Labour government’s
support for the Trust: “I look forward to
working with the National Trust to develop
this work and open up more of our beauti
ful countryside for everyone to enjoy.”
He said: “Nature underpins everything:
our economy, our communities and our
livelihoods. But we have become one of
the most nature-depleted countries in the
world. Restoring nature is a key pillar of
the government’s plan for change.
“I’ve just arrived back this afternoon
from the UN Oceans Conference in Nice.
I was proud to announce a consultation
on banning bottom-trawling in our ma
rine protected areas. We can’t go on wip
ing out precious marine habitats, just be
cause they’re out of sight beneath the sea.
“And yesterday, my colleague Matthew
Pennycook announced that the govern
ment will update national planning policy
to ensure swift bricks are incorporated in
to new buildings. They make a massive
impact on expanding bird populations. We
will make sure that now happens in new
developments right across the country.
“We will create nine new national river
walks, plant three new national forests and
support communities to create new parks
and green spaces in their neighbour
hoods. We’ve already announced the first
new national forest between the Cotswolds
and the Mendips which will see 20 million
trees planted in the coming years.
“It’s a national scandal that our rivers,
lakes and seas are choked by record levels
of pollution. We’re cleaning them up with
new laws to ban bonuses for water bosses
who oversee catastrophic pollution inci
dents, and bringing in over £100 billion of
private funding to fix the broken pipes that
are the primary cause of sewage leaks.”
The culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, also
spoke in support of the Trust, in contrast
to some of her predecessors under the
Tories who had criticised a report reveal
ing that nearly a hundred of its historic
properties were built with money made
in India or through the slave trade.
Nandy said she had visited Trust prop
erties with her parents and now, with her
10-year-old son, had been to “hundreds
of National Trust properties all over the
country”. “What we’ve seen is an organisa
tion that is truly national in the sense that
you are rooted locally, standing with com
munities not just to protect and preserve,
but to promote and celebrate the pride,
heritage and contribution of those places
and their people to our country.”
The volunteers were warmly thanked
by the Trust’s chairman, René Olivieri.
National Trust sets vision to heal
nature and engage more Asians
CHARITY PLEDGES ACTION TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHALLENGES AS IT MARKS 130 YEARS
RESTORING BRITAIN: (From left) Lisa
Nandy, Steve Reed, René Olivieri and
Hilary McGrady at a National Trust
event marking its 130th anniversary
© National Trust/Megan Taylor
CURRENT and former MPs from
all parties gathered at the House
of Commons last week to cele
brate the 90th birthday of Sir An
war Pervez, the founder of retail
er Bestway Group.
The event took place in the
Churchill Room and was hosted
by Lord Choudrey.
Former Lord chancellor Sir
Brandon Lewis, former ministers
Tom Tugendhat and Lord
Maude, and MPs from the Con
servative, Labour and Liberal
Democrat parties attended, a
statement said.
Former ministers praised Sir
Anwar’s contribution with Tu
gendhat and Lord Maude de
scribing the businessman as “a
living embodiment of everything
that is good in British society”.
Sir Brandon told guests how
Bestway had helped his family’s
small business grow during the
1980s. Both Lord Maude and Sir
Brandon spoke about trips to Pa
kistan that Sir Anwar had organ
ised for them when they served
as Tory chairs.
Pakistan’s high commissioner
to the UK, Dr Mohammad Faisal,
and Lord Khan of Burnley high
lighted Sir Anwar’s role in
strengthening ties between Brit
ain and Pakistan.
Sir Anwar founded Bestway in
1976, which has since grown into
a multi-billion pound business
employing over 47,000 people
worldwide. The company oper
ates across food wholesale, phar
maceuticals, cement and bank
ing. Bestway Wholesale now has
62 depots across the UK and
serves 100,000 retailers. The
company has a yearly turnover
of £3 billion and owns more than
200 shops.
The Asian entrepreneur also
set up the Bestway Foundation,
which has given over £44 mil
lion to charities. This year
marks both Sir Anwar’s 90th
birthday and Bestway Group’s
50th anniversary.
Sir Anwar feted at Commons gathering
BUSINESS PIONEER: Sir Anwar Pervez
(centre) with his family