Revered VetPlus chair David Haythornthwaite raised issues on the college’s DEI championing – and was branded a ‘racist’ in response by a dean.
Revered businessman David Haythornthwaite was left livid with the wrongful slur (Picture: AFC Fylde)
A red-faced college has apologised and paid £32,000 damages after a dean wrongly accused a revered millionaire businessman of being a ‘racist’. David Haythornthwaite, chairman of VetPlus and AFC Fylde, was sponsoring the opening of the College of Lancashire’s new College of Veterinary Medication when dismayed to find a dignitary on the occasion was the co-founder of The British Veterinary Ethnicity & Range Society.
He contacted the college to recommend their focus ought to be on veterinary excellence and never ‘Range, Fairness and Inclusion’ (DEI) however was first despatched a chastising e-mail by dean Dr Heather Bacon – earlier than she emailed colleagues wrongly branding him “a racist.” Now the college has issued a correction and public apology and supplied to pay £32,000 defamation compensation to a charity of Mr Haythornthwaite’s selecting, in addition to his authorized prices.
The college admitted: “Dr Heather Bacon despatched an e-mail to a small variety of people – that e-mail contained accusations of racism in opposition to David Haythornthwaite. These accusations have been flawed and unfounded.”
Commenting on the result, Mr Haythornthwaite mentioned: “It’s actually unhappy that so many establishments have been taken over by a fanatical minority intent on imposing their views on the bulk.
“When anybody questions that view they’re vilified, pigeon-holed and put into whichever derogatory field fits their agenda, which on this case was that of being a racist.
“Within the majority of those circumstances the accused are both too frightened or do not need the assets to struggle again. This time they picked on the flawed individual.”
Mr Haythornthwaite runs ‘Tangerine Holdings’, a family-run UK non-public agency that owns VetPlus and AFC Fylde and is focussed on funding Lancashire.
He had a specific curiosity within the college’s new veterinary college as it’s situated solely 12 miles from his household enterprise VetPlus in Lytham.
The millionaire mentioned as quickly as the concept for the college had grow to be public, he was approached by the college about collaborating in varied methods as soon as it was open in June 2025.
VetPlus agreed to pay £17,500 to be headline sponsor of the opening occasion, however Mr Haythornthwaite mentioned he later withdrew the supply when he found that one of many three dignitaries invited to open the occasion was Mr Navaratnam Partheeban, a high-profile DEI in veterinary drugs and farming activist.
A spokesman for VetPlus mentioned: “Mr Haythornthwaite wrote to Peter Holland, the Affiliate Dean, expressing his views that this was not what the College ought to be focussed on however relatively on it being a centre of excellence for veterinary college students.
“Being a proud Lancastrian, he was enthusiastic about Lancashire getting its personal Vet College and the alternatives to work collectively, till he grew to become conscious that their most important focus seemed to be on DEI, which was crystalised in Mr Holland’s reply to him on the subject material.
“Upon discovering that, Mr Haythornthwaite had withdrawn his assist for the opening occasion, Dr Heather Bacon the Dean of Veterinary Medication, wrote on to him, chastising him for his views and subsequently circulated an e-mail to work colleagues accusing him of being a racist.”
“Dr Bacon and the College of Lancashire want to take this chance to subject a honest and unreserved apology to Mr Haythornthwaite for the indignity and embarrassment induced to his private {and professional} status by the e-mail.
“As an expression of their honest remorse for the hurt induced, Dr Bacon and the College have agreed to pay a considerable sum by means of compensation to a charity of Mr Haythornthwaite’s selecting, and to pay Mr Haythornthwaite’s authorized prices.”
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