John Whelan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House and commend him. On the first day of summer there is a great deal of warmth in the room and I would like to continue in that vein. The Minister has embraced the motion, not just in letter but in spirit. I also commend my colleagues in the Independent Group. Senator O'Brien has championed the issue, with other colleagues in the Independent Group. To an extent, we are all singing from the same hymn sheet. I do not think anyone doubts the bona fides and good intent of the Minister. It is great to see cross-party support for what is at stake.

Before we get carried away, it should be noted the Charities Act was passed by Parliament in 2009. The words I live in dread of in the Chamber are "shortly", "imminently" and "soon", but I am not saying that applies in this case. One never knows what timeframe is involved. On 19 September 2012, I introduced a similar motion calling for the full implementation of the Charities Act and for the appointment and establishment of the office of the regulator.

To be fair, at that time it received wholehearted, warm, cross-party support, but that was nine months ago. Albeit that there has been consultation since, and that is important, at that time there was some nervousness about it. Nobody at any stage is casting aspersions or doubts on the integrity and honesty of the 8,000 charities that have access to €4 billion in State funding and an estimated additional €4 billion in charitable donations and contributions, which is more than half the budget of the Department of Health. We know the scrutiny that is required to ensure the taxpayer and communities get value for money and that the money is going where it is most needed, to the client at the coalface.

As Senator Donovan pointed out in his moving contribution, everybody in the room has their favourite charities and work. We can only commend the work of the Irish Cancer Society, the Irish Hospice Foundation, the Irish Wheelchair Association and the myriad suicide support groups in the current climate around the country. This morning coming to work I saw the lifeboat volunteers out with their May Day collection. I thought it was very clever word play and very appropriate. If anyone is going home this sunny evening they should keep the collectors in mind. I am sure they are out and about.

The charity sector relies on its credibility and reputation. By and large we are very lucky in this country to have such commendable people. It is a vibrant, robust and vigorous sector, and without that voluntary charitable sector there would be a horrendous void in Irish society that the State could not meet or match. We would be left stranded in so many areas. Therefore, it is vital that the important but limited funding available is being put to best use. Let us not cod ourselves. There are unscrupulous people out there, present company excluded. Those who have put their best foot forward are clamouring for the implementation of the Act. They have been imploring the Government to get on with it. Charities here have been embracing the consultation process. We can no longer say there is a cost or a structural impediment that prevents us getting on with it. Too much is at stake, not only the money but the valuable work.

We have seen time and again that there are those who will take advantage when advantage is there to be taken. They will exploit any gaps and loopholes. There are cases of excessive commission, where the money is being stripped out and is not going to the people for whom it is intended. There are charities that are not transparent in their actions, payment systems and processes. It is hard to believe that they are even ripping off the clothing banks. This is something a charity regulatory office would bring to an end. We should have a league table of best practice so people would know the charities that are behaving and conforming to best practice and those that are putting the money to best use. We have a certain amount of duplication and overlap in the sector. That is not good for anyone, certainly not for the children and those in need of diminishing resources.

I commend the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, and welcome her to the House to continue the discussion. I commend her for taking the implementation of the Charities Act in a gradual fashion so far, but we are four years down the line. The Labour Party group brought forward a similar motion. I commend the Independent Group which not only brought forward the problems or challenges but came up with solutions, which is to be commended. Our motion dates back nine months and I would like to see the consultation brought to a successful conclusion and us to move robustly and promptly into the implementation phase.