For the past two decades, Arthur Harverd has been presiding over the UK’s process to see the confiscated assets of Jews persecuted by the Nazis returned to their families.

Following his eight-year chairmanship of the government’s Enemy Property Compensation Advisory Panel (EPCAP), established under Tony Blair, the chartered accountant and arbitrator has received an MBE for his work in the New Year Honours.

“The scheme was formulated in 1999, and for many decades prior to that there had been a feeling of injustice [for Jewish families],” the 87-year-old told the JC. “Many Jewish families never got their money back.”

At the outset of the war, the Trading with the Enemy Act saw the government seize UK assets belonging to individuals who were resident in belligerent countries such as Germany to make sure they could not be used as part of those countries’ war effort. This, however, included many Jewish people who had moved their property to the UK to keep it out of the Nazis’ hands.

Mr Harverd said that thanks to the “careful” record-keeping of the UK’s Custodian of Enemy Property, two-thirds of claims had been successful, though he could not say what proportion of the confiscated assets had been returned.

“We’re always very glad when a claim succeeds,” he said, adding that he was “very impressed by the resourcefulness […] exhibited by so many people.”

The Muswell Hill Synagogue congregant described the reparation scheme as “the most liberal I’ve ever come across” in his arbitration career, which also saw him involved with the International Commission on Holocaust Era Insurance Claims. Successful claimants receive the value of their original assets multiplied by the level of inflation since the date of confiscation.

Whilst the scheme initially received over 1,200 claims when it was first launched, Mr Harverd remarked that there was a dwindling number of requests. He sees EPCAP being wound up at some point in the future, but the scheme has been “tremendously supported” by successive ministers for business, and the government wishes for it to continue for the moment.

The Fortis Green resident dedicated his honour to the “hard work that the panel have put in throughout.

“We work very well as a team and we get on very well together, despite holding different views when we examine cases.”