BUSINESSMAN Roger De Haan, the former chairman of Saga, is to receive an honorary degree.

The University of Kent is to present the accolade at a ceremony in Canterbury Cathedral in July.

Mr De Haan stepped down as chairman last year after selling the Folkestone and Thanet-based over-50s travel and financial services company for £1.2bn.

He worked for Saga for 38 years, many of them with his father Sidney who founded the company in 1950.

During his time with the company, Saga expanded into financial services as well as growing its travel business.

Mr De Haan, who recently bought the Port of Folkestone for £12m, has ambitious plans to revive the harbour’s fortunes, hiring Lord Rogers, the renowned architect, to draw up a masterplan. He also wants to revive ferry links with Boulogne.

He is spearheading the regeneration of his home town of Folkestone, including a creative quarter. He is also behind a plan to replace two schools in Folkestone and Thanet with academies.

He is also chairman of the Saga Charitable Trust and Folkestone’s Metropole Galleries. Mr De Haan is a member of the Kent Partnership and chairman of Governors of St Mary’s Westbrook School.

Other recipients of honary degrees will include BBC presenter Gavin Esler, writers Sarah Waters and Marina Warner, Hugh Orde, Chief Constable of Northern Ireland, Dame Anne Evans, opera singer, Geoffrey Nice QC, barrister, Margaret Sparks, a renowned historian,and Ian Swingland, a conservationist.