Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)

I move amendment No. 25:

In page 14, to delete lines 18 to 41 and in page 15, to delete lines 1 to 7 and substitute the following:

"(a) to establish and maintain a register of charitable organisations,

(b) to encourage, facilitate and monitor compliance by charities with the provisions of this Act, including by way of issuing (or as it considers appropriate approving) guidelines, codes of conduct, and model constitutional documents,

(c) to carry out investigations in accordance with this Act,

(d) to take remedial or protective action in relation to the findings of such investigations,

(e) to give information or advice, or to make proposals to the Minister on matters relating to the Authority's functions,

(f) to do any other thing consistent with its responsibilities under this Act.".

I tabled this amendment to avoid confusion. Charities are in favour of the regulator and welcome regulation, which has been sought for many years. People are pleased this Bill has at last been introduced. The Minister previously stated the Bill will be reviewed within five years. It is important to do so in case Members do not get the legislation right as this is the first time such legislation has been introduced in Ireland. It has been welcomed by all charitable organisations throughout the State.

As for the regulator, charities should be able to do their job. They should be able to raise the necessary funding that they should not be obliged to raise, were the State doing its job. The regulator's role is to regulate and ensure that everything is above board. It must ensure that charities produce annual accounts at the end of the year and are doing what they are meant to do. However, the regulator should not interfere with the administration and management of charities. While I do not object to the regulator providing advice to them, it should not be telling them how to run their businesses on a day-to-day basis. The charities should run their own affairs. The regulator's job is to intervene if a problem arises in how a charity is being run or if the law is being broken. It is not to interfere with them on a day-to-day basis, which is the reason I tabled this amendment.

See this speech in context