Charities and Prince Charles support drug possession trustee

Governance | Vibeka Mair | 13 Aug 2008

Prince Charles has been attacked for ignoring calls to sack Eva Rausing, a trustee of one of his charities who was caught trying to smuggle crack and heroin into the American Embassy last April.

Labour MP Ian Davidson told Charity News Alert that the multi-millionaire heiress, Eva Rausing, who is a trustee of the Prince’s Foundation for the Built Environment, should not continue to sit on the board of the charity.

“It sends out the wrong message if someone caught in possession of crack and heroin is allowed to continue in a prominent public position as if nothing has happened,” he said.

Davidson also questioned Prince Charles’ motives for keeping Rausing on the board of trustees. “If Prince Charles keeps this woman on because she is a large donor to the charity it suggests that one can buy one’s way out of punishment and buy one’s way into influence,” he said.

Charities give full support

However, charities connected to Rausing, who is married to the heir to the Tetra Pak empire, voiced strong support for her despite her caution for drug possession last week.

Hank Dittmar, chief executive of the Prince’s Foundation for the Built Environment, said: “We support Eva Rausing in her efforts to overcome her problems, and look forward to her completion of her treatment programme. She remains a dedicated member of the Prince’s Foundation’s board of trustees.”

A spokeswoman for Prince Charles confirmed that he was “backing the charity’s decision”.

Nick Barton, joint chief executive of Action on Addiction, also came out in support of Rausing: “The E and H K Rausing Trust has been an extremely generous supporter of addiction charities for many years. Their support has resulted in a great many people and their families receiving help for their addiction problems. We offer our ongoing support to Mr and Mrs Rausing and their family.”

Drug prevention charity Mentor UK refused to comment but confirmed that she was still a patron for the charity.

Directory: Prince's Trust
Who's Who: Vibeka Mair

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