Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will speak fast for once in my life.

I welcome the decision of the Minister, Deputy Shatter, to establish the charities regulator. He has announced an aggressive timeline for establishing it. In fairness to him, this decision was taken some time ago and his announcement is not a knee-jerk reaction to the crisis in the CRC, as some critics have alleged. I am concerned, however, over the lag between the Minister's decision and the implementation. Had the charities regulator been in place, it might have been possible to limit the damage to the reputation of the CRC rather than drag down the whole charity sector. Deputy Donnelly said what is occurring has been taking place for the past few years but I first spoke on charities legislation in 2003. This matter could have been dealt with a long time ago. We wanted to change the circumstances that obtained in 2003 also.

We must make no mistake that the entire charity sector has suffered as a result of the recent revelations. Over the past seven years, the sector has been hit by a perfect storm. The level of support has fallen in the State by between 20% and 40%, depending on the charity. Donations from the public have decreased. Owing to the state of the public finances, grants have been reduced.

I am reliably informed that even before the CRC crisis, the percentage of Irish people giving to charity had for the first time fallen below that giving to charity in the United Kingdom. The impact of the CRC scandal has been profound. The period up to Christmas is a key one for many charities as some take in up to 60% of their income in those weeks. Fund-raising Ireland reported charitable income was down by 40%.

The longer-term impact may be even more profound. The chairman of one small charity told me it does not intend to run any bucket or bag-packing drives using volunteers this year as it is afraid those volunteers will be abused by members of the public. Left unaddressed, we will see not only a fall in fund-raising income, but also a decline in the number of people volunteering and, crucially, the number willing to serve on charity boards at a time when good governance is needed more than ever. We need the Minister to appoint the regulator as a matter of urgency and ensure the office of regulator is properly resourced. I urge him to pay particular attention to the board of the new body and those who serve on it. Legislation is rightly very specific on the skills and qualifications necessary for board membership but we need people not only with the right skills, but also with a stature such that the public can trust them to try to restore the reputation.

Charities need to step up to the mark. Every charity needs to sign up to and implement the fund-raising codes and code of governance and produce and publish the compliant accounts. The charity sector needs to understand that this is no longer the gold standard but the minimum that any serious fund-raising charity needs to meet. Charities needs to consider a co-ordinated response to the lack of trust. For example, they must ask whether we need a quality mark for the sector so charities can clearly and easily show the public they are adhering to best standards. This House also needs to step up to the mark.

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