James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)

I welcome the publication of the Charities Bill 2007 and note that the community and voluntary organisations that work for charitable purposes have been urging the Government to regulate charities for many years. The Bill is only one part of the infrastructure of support and development that is required if the community and voluntary sector is to make its important contribution to supporting sustainable and inclusive communities, acknowledged as a key role for the sector in Towards 2016. I take this opportunity to draw attention to the acknowledgement by Government contained in Towards 2016 that support will be required for charities to meet their obligations in the new regulatory environment, and the commitment by Government to provide additional resources to assist the sector in the transition.

The explanatory memorandum states that the purpose of the Bill is to reform the law relating to charities in order to ensure greater accountability, protect against abuse of charitable status and fraud, enhance public trust and confidence in charities and increase transparency in the sector. Key aspects of the Bill will provide for: a definition of "charitable purpose" for the first time in primary legislation, which is welcome; the creation of a new regulatory authority to secure compliance by charities with their legal obligations and also to encourage better administration of charities — we would all like to be assured the money we give goes mainly to the charity and not on administration; a register of charities in which all charities operating in the State must register; the submission of annual activity reports by charities to the new authority; updating the law relating to fund-raising, particularly in regard to collections by way of direct debits and similar non-cash methods; the creation of a charity appeals tribunal; and the provision of consultative panels to assist the authority in its work and ensure effective consultation with stakeholders. The Bill, together with the Charities Acts 1961 and 1973 and the Street and House to House Collections Act 1962, will provide for a composite regulatory framework for charities through a combination of new legislative provisions and retention of existing charities legislation, with updating where appropriate.

Organisations should not be excluded from the register of charities on the ground that they work primarily to promote political causes, an issue to which Deputy Martin Mansergh alluded. This proposal could lead to the exclusion of genuine charities from the register. To remove this risk of exclusion, the reference to "political causes" should be deleted at section 2, page 9, line 24, which defines an excluded body, so that the sentence reads "a political party, or a body, the principal object of which is to promote a political party or a political candidate". The room for interpreting the term "political cause" could create problems for many charities.

The "purposes that are of benefit to the community", as set out in section 3(8), must be amended to include the original categories included in the heads of Bill published in April 2006. These include the advancement of human rights, the advancement of social inclusion and social justice, the advancement of citizenship and the advancement of the effectiveness and efficiency of charities. In addition, where it occurs in the definitions in section 3, the word "promotion" should be replaced with the word "advancement".

Section 3(8) should also cite the "advancement of the welfare of children" as being a charitable purpose, particularly in light of the lack of existing constitutional protections afforded to children. In addition, to ensure that the "purposes that are of benefit to the community" are not considered to consist solely of those cited, Part 1, section 3(8), which defines the term "purposes that are of benefit to the community", should be amended to read: "In this section, purpose that is of benefit to the community shall include, but shall not be limited to..."

We need to protect the identity and independence of charities by ensuring that agencies under the direct control of a Government Minister, that is, State agencies, are not included in the register of charities. Otherwise, there will be confusion in the public mind about what are charities and what are State agencies. I understand the Health Service Executive could be construed as being a charitable agency. The HSE receives substantial State funding from citizens and should not feature on any charitable register.

This brings me to another, particularly objectionable issue. Fundraising regularly takes place for health care facilities such as Temple Street Children's Hospital, the mammography unit in Ennis which has been closed, the Crumlin and Mater hospitals and dialysis, cystic fibrosis and autism services. It is the responsibility of the Government and HSE to fund and provide health care and people should not feel obliged to raise additional funds to help the Government do its job. This practice is wrong and diverts money from other charities which need our help.

Most charities want the fees imposed for filing returns or registering to be abolished. The Government should offer charitable institutions and causes support by removing these charges.

The duty of care that should to apply to trustees should be defined in the Bill in line with the treatment proposed in 2006. For organisations constituted as trusts, the legislation should include a provision to permit trustees to indemnify themselves against unintentional breach of trust using the charity's assets, as was proposed in the heads of Bill published in 2006. At present, a trustee is not permitted to benefit in any way from the resources of a charity, a provision which prohibits the payment of insurance premiums by a charity on a trustee's behalf. The Bill must explicitly permit charities to indemnify their trustees for unintentional breach of trust. For a provision of this nature to be workable, the Bill must also be amended to include the definition of the statutory duty of care which would apply to a trustee, as was recommended by the Law Reform Commission in its report on charitable trusts and legal structures for charities, LRC 80-2006. This would then permit insurance to cover unintentional breach of trust provided the trustee had attended to his or her duty of care under the terms of the Bill.

We need to support, rather than discourage, spontaneous community fundraising. Uncertainty surrounds the implications of the Bill for those who organise or participate in spontaneous community fundraising as a response to disasters, such as that which pertained during the tsunami crisis. The Bill needs to clearly set out the requirements or exceptions which would apply regarding permits in the case of exceptional, once-off community responses to urgent need. In the absence of such clarity, people may become unwilling to organise such responses for fear of falling foul of the law, which would be a terrible additional consequence for those already affected by a tragedy.

I ask the Minister to use this opportunity to remove the provision by which charities may only avail of a tax break for donations when they exceed a threshold of €250 per annum. In addition, those who make charitable donations should benefit from a tax break. Such a step would encourage greater philanthropy and significantly increase the funds available to charitable organisations.

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