Government launches a consultation on strengthening the Charity Commission’s powers in response to the National Audit Office’s reports
Government launches a consultation on strengthening the Charity Commission’s powers in response to the National Audit Office’s reports
Only hours after the release of the NAO’s highly critical reports into the Charity Commission’s failures to investigate charities and clamp down on abuse, Nick Hurd, the Minister for Civil Society, launched a consultation on strengthening the Charity Commission’s powers to tackle serious abuse within charities, which will run until 12 February 2014. The consultation proposes:
- Extending the range of criminal offences which automatically disqualify someone from acting as a charity trustee;
- A new discretionary power to enable the Charity Commission to disqualify someone who it considers unfit from acting as a charity trustee;
- A new power to enable the Charity Commission to close down a charity;
- A new power to issue statutory warnings; and
- The extension of some existing powers and the closing of some existing technical loopholes to make the existing powers more effective.
The Charity Commission has welcomed the consultation and the proposals to enhance its ability to investigate charities and act effectively to prevent or halt abuse when uncovered.
For additional information or to discuss your requirements with one of our charity law team, call us today on 01895 207809 or email charities@ibblaw.co.uk.
