1 00:00:10,930 --> 00:00:17,680 A book which was recently published has a title amongst the supporting cast. 2 00:00:17,680 --> 00:00:26,990 But I think it's the subtitle, which is most interesting. It says, The Reminiscences and Reflections on Three Careers. 3 00:00:26,990 --> 00:00:36,080 And that, indeed is what it's all about. The three careers were first relocating in the eponymous family firm. 4 00:00:36,080 --> 00:00:44,650 Secondly, politics. Where I was a conservative MP and a minister in governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major. 5 00:00:44,650 --> 00:00:58,070 And the third one. It's a sort of package of miscellaneous activities and interests which philanthropy in various forms forms a major part. 6 00:00:58,070 --> 00:01:02,480 So. For focussing on those careers, 7 00:01:02,480 --> 00:01:14,300 there is an introduction which includes a chapter on Oxford where I arrived was to college after having done national service in 1953. 8 00:01:14,300 --> 00:01:19,760 Looking back. You realise how very different. 9 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:26,560 University life is. In normal circumstances, not under Coffield today. 10 00:01:26,560 --> 00:01:37,750 In so many ways, I find when I'm talking to children and grandchildren who will be into university, been to Oxford. 11 00:01:37,750 --> 00:01:44,380 On well-known ways, it's different. The proportion of us who go to university. 12 00:01:44,380 --> 00:01:50,920 Fifty percent or more female participation. Nothing like that in my day. 13 00:01:50,920 --> 00:01:56,100 But it's obvious differences which I highlight, which I think I think are interesting. 14 00:01:56,100 --> 00:02:05,250 First, we had rationing seems is strange. Eight years after the war, you still had your own butter ration to take into whole. 15 00:02:05,250 --> 00:02:09,630 The second nets less well known. That's obvious. 16 00:02:09,630 --> 00:02:16,930 Is it because so few went to university? Their job prospects were remarkably good. 17 00:02:16,930 --> 00:02:24,300 So there was less pressure to get a first class degree to get a first class job. 18 00:02:24,300 --> 00:02:32,420 So I was never really under that pressure because I knew I was going into the family, if that indeed was my friend's career. 19 00:02:32,420 --> 00:02:37,290 It was a very interesting time. I need 56 to 74. 20 00:02:37,290 --> 00:02:44,430 Interesting, because it was a period when food retailing was becoming dominated by supermarkets. 21 00:02:44,430 --> 00:02:46,200 And that was a challenge for Sainsbury's, 22 00:02:46,200 --> 00:02:57,960 which started with 250 odd countersurveillance shops could day as a private company with limited access to capital, maintain their identity. 23 00:02:57,960 --> 00:03:03,440 Keep up that belief in good quality. And survive. 24 00:03:03,440 --> 00:03:13,010 What was really a remarkable challenge. And so I spent most of my time finding Seitz's hoop markets, planting them and getting them built. 25 00:03:13,010 --> 00:03:18,680 I think during my time as a director with that responsibility, 26 00:03:18,680 --> 00:03:27,440 we built 151 supermarkets and one of the half million square feet of of of warehouse space. 27 00:03:27,440 --> 00:03:34,430 So plenty to do. The next career was politics, which does actually take up quite a lot of time. 28 00:03:34,430 --> 00:03:45,050 This is not a detailed account of my what happened in politics during my career, but various activities of interest, I thought, 29 00:03:45,050 --> 00:03:54,000 including coming first on the ballot for private members bills and carrying into law the Indecent Displays Control Act. 30 00:03:54,000 --> 00:04:04,280 I spent a lot of time on trade policy, including signing the WTO treaty on behalf of the British government. 31 00:04:04,280 --> 00:04:11,280 So I retired from politics and from ministerial office at times of my own choosing, 32 00:04:11,280 --> 00:04:18,240 which is relatively unusual for employees, sometimes at all, political careers end in tears. 33 00:04:18,240 --> 00:04:29,980 I don't think mine did. And I was lucky that I didn't have to spend a long time in jobs where you tied up dealing with details of a bill. 34 00:04:29,980 --> 00:04:35,890 It went quite a lot of time travelling on behalf of the government, all of which was very interesting. 35 00:04:35,890 --> 00:04:45,430 Now, my third career, which I left politics in time to have one, and I stopped that section of the book by saying everyone should have won. 36 00:04:45,430 --> 00:04:49,720 It certainly keeps you interested in that. 37 00:04:49,720 --> 00:05:07,220 And I was involved in five books with Grant Making Charitable Trusts, which was a privilege to be able to give the money. 38 00:05:07,220 --> 00:05:14,000 And it did mean that I was actually chair of the fourth cross at various times. 39 00:05:14,000 --> 00:05:19,590 So it was quite a lot of activity in the book. I also describe. 40 00:05:19,590 --> 00:05:27,740 Several specific projects. The one with which the family name is best known, of course, is the same three link, the National Gallery. 41 00:05:27,740 --> 00:05:34,030 There's a chapter on that one, which was probably most important for me. 42 00:05:34,030 --> 00:05:41,710 Which one I took up after retiring from politics, was chairman of the first chairman, 43 00:05:41,710 --> 00:05:49,050 the founder, chairman of the summit, that House trust where we took over a wonderful square. 44 00:05:49,050 --> 00:05:57,200 The loud noise, two attractive squares in London, which was being occupied as a car park by Inland Revenue staff. 45 00:05:57,200 --> 00:06:03,270 And we turned it into a public space, a centre for culture of the arts, which I recommend anybody to visit. 46 00:06:03,270 --> 00:06:09,360 It has been very successful. I enjoyed the process of writing the book. 47 00:06:09,360 --> 00:06:18,450 It took a long time and it required a lot of support from my wife and family. 48 00:06:18,450 --> 00:06:26,100 I look back at it. It's something worthwhile doing and I hope anybody who reads the book will find it enjoyable.