National Trust Acts

Lord Lexden Excerpts

Tuesday 21st January 2025 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Lexden]

To ask His Majesty’s Government whether they plan to review the National Trust Acts.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Baroness Twycross) (Lab)]

My Lords, I should declare that I am a member of the National Trust, as I expect many other noble Lords are as well. I am sure that noble Lords from across your Lordships’ House will join me in wishing the National Trust well in its 130th year. The Government have no plans to review the National Trust Acts. The National Trust is an independent charity run by its board of trustees who are responsible for the organisation’s governance and are accountable to its members and to the Charity Commission.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Lexden (Con)]

My Lords, in view of the importance of this famous institution, which has come in for considerable criticism in recent years, would it not be prudent to review the legislation under which it operates? How can an institution function satisfactorily when it has a voting system that effectively bars from office those of whom the current leadership disapprove, when history is distorted by undue emphasis on colonialism and when a great house, Clandon Park, is left in ruins after an insurance payout that should have been used to restore it? National Trust managers profess to see raw beauty in this blackened shell—raw folly and betrayal would be more like it. Are there not some worrying features of the activities of the National Trust today, including its governance, which should trouble us all?

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

I feel quite strongly that the National Trust is a charity, and as a charity, government needs to be really careful of the extent to which we take a view on how a charity that has democratic processes should operate. To note the point that the noble Lord made around the voting system, it is for the trustees of the National Trust to determine the running of elections in line with the charity’s governing document, but I note that the National Trust members voted in 2023 to keep the quick vote system. The noble Lord asked a number of questions, one of which was around Clandon Park. I also note that the trust’s proposals in relation to this historic building reflect in-depth conversations with heritage bodies, architectural specialists, community organisations and local residents, and also with over 75,000 visitors to Clandon since the fire.