Attempted right-wing takeover of National Trust backed by Nigel Farage fails!

The anti-woke group, Restore Trust, had launched a renewed campaign to win seats on the Trust’s council this year after failing in their attempts last year, and this time they had the likes of Farage, along with the right-wing press backing them. 

Berrington Hall (National Trust)

An attempt by a right-wing group to take over the National Trust, the UK’s largest charity, has failed after the candidates backed by the likes of Nigel Farage and Jacob Rees-Mogg, failed to secure a place on the National Trust’s council in this year’s elections.

The anti-woke group, Restore Trust, had launched a renewed campaign to win seats on the Trust’s council this year after failing in their attempts last year, and this time they had the likes of Farage, along with the right-wing press backing them. 

Why do the National Trust’s elections matter? Because what was at stake was the future not only of the UK’s largest charity but also one which owns more than 1,300 farms, 775 miles of coastline and 250,000 hectares of land, making it Britain’s largest private landowner. The right recognises the importance of an institution like the National Trust, and did all it could in the council elections to help its candidates.

Among RT’s list of candidates was Farage’s friend Lady Violet Manners. Yorkshire Bylines reports: “Manners is the eldest daughter of UKIP supporter the Duke of Rutland and her family’s estate, Belvoir Castle, has hosted fundraising events for the party. Farage has been a dinner guest at the castle which boasts 356 rooms and 16,000 acres of land.” Other candidates included Philip Merricks, who has drawn criticism in the past over his links to the grouse shooting industry, as well as Lord Jonathan Sumption who is reported to have earned the highest legal fee in British history when as a barrister he defended the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich in the controversial Berezovsky vs Abramovich case of 2012. 

However, the National Trust scored a conclusive victory over the efforts of the Restore Trust and its candidates. Participation in the organisation’s AGM hit record levels this year as members rallied in their efforts to support the Trust. All five of the candidates recommended by the National Trust secured their seats on the council.

Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward

Comments are closed.