Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between John Glen and Kelvin Hopkins

Thursday 14th September 2017 Commons Chamber

[Kelvin Hopkins (Luton North) (Lab)]

6. What recent discussions her Department has had with the National Trust on its stewardship of places of cultural value and heritage.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (John Glen)]

My Department has regular conversations about shared interests with the National Trust, such as conservation, participation and world heritage. I will be meeting Dame Helen Ghosh, director general of the National Trust, next month.

[Kelvin Hopkins]

I thank the Minister for his answer. I should say that I am a member and a supporter of the National Trust. I must ask, however, whether the licensing for trail hunting on National Trust land is consistent with his aim of preserving and protecting historical places and spaces, considering the growing evidence of illegal hunting, particularly under the false alibi of trail hunting, and the damage that can cause.

[John Glen]

That is certainly a matter I will need to raise with the director general of the National Trust. Such matters are for National Trust members, and the National Trust has its own policies in place. I believe that a resolution is going to its annual general meeting in the autumn. This is a matter for it to resolve.