Sir Trevor Edwin Chinn (born 24 July 1935) is a British businessman, philanthropist, and political activist.
Business career
Chinn was educated at
Clifton College
''The spirit nourishes within''
, established = 160 years ago
, closed =
, type = Public schoolIndependent boarding and day school
, religion = Christian
, president =
, head_label = Head of College
, head ...
and
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the city ...
and started his career at Lex Garages (later Lex Service plc) where he followed in his father Rosser's footsteps, ascending to the role of managing director in 1968 at the age of 33 and to chairman and Chief Executive in 1973. In 1968 Lex made £1m in profits, but by the time he retired in 2003 the profits were over £85m. His most notable achievement at Lex was the acquisition of the RAC in 1999 for £425m, which completely changed the nature of the company and led to its change of name in 2001 to
RAC plc
RAC Limited (The RAC) is a British automotive services company headquartered in Walsall, West Midlands. Its principal services are roadside assistance and general insurance, and its subsidiaries include RAC Motoring Services Ltd, RAC Financial S ...
. In 1989 he initiated the Lex Report on Motoring (now the RAC Report on Motoring), the most authoritative study of motorists' attitudes in Britain.
He has become a successful entrepreneur. He is Senior Adviser,
CVC Capital Partners
CVC Capital Partners is a Luxembourg-based French private equity and investment advisory firm with approximately US$133 billion of assets under management and approximately €157 billion in secured commitments since inception across American, E ...
; Chairman of ITIS plc, a traffic information company; Chairman of
Streetcar
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
, the largest UK pay-as-you-go car club, concentrating its operations around London and five other UK cities; Chairman of the Mayor's Fund for London and Chair of the government's Motorists' Forum.
Public roles
Chinn's leadership roles include Chief Barker of the
Variety Club of Great Britain
Variety, the Children's Charity is a charitable organization founded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1927.
History
On October 10, 1927, a group of eleven men involved in show business set up a social club which they named the "Variety Club". On ...
for two successive terms (1977 and 1978), Chairman of the Friends of the
Duke of Edinburgh's Award
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award (commonly abbreviated DofE) is a youth awards programme founded in the United Kingdom in 1956 by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, that has since expanded to 144 nations. The awards recognise adolescents and young ...
Scheme (for which he was appointed
CVO CVO may refer to:
Science and technology
* Cascades Volcano Observatory, Vancouver, Washington, US
* Chief veterinary officer, the head of a veterinary authority
* Circumventricular organs, positioned around the ventricular system of the brain
* Co ...
in 1989), Vice-Chairman of the Wishing Well Appeal for
Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital (informally GOSH or Great Ormond Street, formerly the Hospital for Sick Children) is a children's hospital located in the Bloomsbury area of the London Borough of Camden, and a part of Great Ormond Street Hospital ...
(for which he received a
knighthood
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
in 1990), and Deputy Chairman of the
Royal Academy Trust.
Described as a Jewish community grandee,
throughout his life he has also devoted himself to the Jewish community in Britain and supporting Israel in a number of roles, for example: chairman and President of the
Joint Israel Appeal, the leading organisation in Britain supporting Israel's humanitarian needs; board member of The
Jewish Community Centre for London
JW3, also known as Jewish Community Centre London, is an arts, culture and entertainment venue, an educational facility and a social and community hub in north London. It is located at 341–351 Finchley Road, London, and opened on 29 Septembe ...
, President of
Norwood from 1996 to 2006; one of the founders of the Jewish Association for Business Ethics (and now Vice-President). Sir Trevor currently sits on the Executive Committee of the
Jewish Leadership Council
The Jewish Leadership Council (previously known as the Jewish Community Leadership Council) is an organisation in the United Kingdom, founded in 2003, whose declared aim is to forward the interests of the organised Jewish community in Britain. ...
and the
Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre
The Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre (BICOM) is a UK-based organisation which acts to promote awareness of Israel and the Middle East in the United Kingdom. BICOM publishes materials such as briefings and a journal, ''Fathom'', ...
(BICOM). In 2016, he became President of the
Movement for Reform Judaism
Reform Judaism (formally the Movement for Reform Judaism and known as Reform Synagogues of Great Britain until 2005) is one of the two World Union for Progressive Judaism–affiliated denominations in the United Kingdom. Reform is relatively ...
.
[
He was Chair of the London Mayor's Fund.
Chinn is a long-time supporter of ]Labour Friends of Israel
Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) is a group in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that promotes support for a strong bilateral relationship between Britain and Israel, and seeks to strengthen ties between the British Labour Party and the Isra ...
. Up to 2016, he donated to the office or campaigns of a number of Labour Party politicians, including MPs Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
, Ruth Smeeth
Ruth Lauren Smeeth, Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent (''née'' Anderson; born 29 June 1979) is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Stoke-on-Trent North from 2015 until 2019. Since 2022 she has been ...
, Liz Kendall
Elizabeth Louise Kendall (born 11 June 1971) is a British Labour Party politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester West since 2010.
Kendall was educated at Queens' College, Cambridge, where she read history. From 2011 to ...
, Tom Watson and Dan Jarvis
Daniel Owen Woolgar Jarvis (born 30 November 1972) is a British Labour Party politician and former British Army officer who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Barnsley Central since 2011. He also served as the Mayor of South Yorks ...
.Ivan Lewis
Ivan Lewis (born 4 March 1967) is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Bury South from 1997 to 2019, initially as a member of the Labour Party then as an independent from 2017.
After serving in various ministerial ...
, Owen Smith
Owen Smith (born 2 May 1970) is a former Labour Party politician and subsequently a British lobbyist, who has been the UK government relations director for pharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb since 2020. Smith was Member of Parliamen ...
, Lisa Nandy
Lisa Eva Nandy (born 9 August 1979) is a British politician serving as Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities since 2021. A member of the Labour Party, she has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Wigan since 2010.
N ...
, Tristram Hunt
Tristram Julian William Hunt, (born 31 May 1974) is a British historian, broadcast journalist and former politician who has been Director of the Victoria and Albert Museum since 2017. He served as the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Stoke ...
, Jack Dromey
John Eugene Joseph Dromey (29 September 1948 – 7 January 2022) was a British politician and trade unionist who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Erdington from 2010 until his death. A member of the Labour Party, he was deput ...
, Ian Austin
Ian Christopher Austin, Baron Austin of Dudley (born 6 March 1965) is a British politician who sits as a life peer in the House of Lords. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Dudley North from the 2005 general election until the 2019 gen ...
, Rachel Reeves
Rachel Jane Reeves (born 13 February 1979) is a British politician and economist serving as Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer since 2021. A member of the Labour Party, she has been Member of Parliament for Leeds West since 2010.
Born in Lewis ...
, Liam Byrne
Liam Dominic Byrne (born 2 October 1970) is a British politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Hodge Hill since 2004. A member of the Labour Party, he served in Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Cabinet from 2008 to 20 ...
and Wes Streeting
Wesley Paul William Streeting (; born 21 January 1983) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care since 2021, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Ilford North since 2015.
He serve ...
.Keir Starmer
Sir Keir Rodney Starmer (; born 2 September 1962) is a British politician and barrister who has served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party since 2020. He has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Holborn and St Pancras ...
.