Sir Tom Farmer Receives Carnegie Medal

Kwik-Fit founder, Sir Tom Farmer has received the Andrew Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy alongside billionaire racehorse owner, The Aga Khan, and members of the Hewlett Packard and Cadbury families.

Sir Tom said he was humbled to be honoured alongside the others and joked: “I thought, ‘why me?’ – when you compare me with them I’m just a raindrop in the ocean. Unless perhaps the nominations committee looked at my business life and took into account all the discounts I gave to the millions of drivers.”

Jack McConnell, first minister, said of Sir Tom: “He was unwilling to stand by and watch the horrors of the war in Kosovo. He used his business to receive and support aid from the public.”

The ceremony, which took place at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, was the first time the event has taken place outside the US. The awards, which recognise individuals who have donated their private wealth for the public good, were named after philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, whose family emigrated to the US from a life of poverty in Scotland in 1848.