Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the chance to speak in this debate. The community and voluntary sector is one of the largest in the State and it makes a huge contribution to the economy, not to mention society as a whole. We are all aware of community and voluntary groups' great importance.

We recognise the role they play in supporting the State in areas such as health service delivery and community development. Given their completion of functions on behalf of the State, it is important that their work be carried out in a fully transparent manner and that they all sing from the same hymn sheet. In the past few weeks there has been a lot of talk about the charity sector, but, unfortunately, none of it has been good. The behaviour of a few - as we have seen in recent revelations at the Committee of Public Accounts and by the Minister for Justice and Equality last night - is nothing short of a betrayal of thousands working in this sector and has damaged the extremely important work charities are doing. Since my election last year, I have met numerous voluntary organisations which are doing amazing work. Most of them operate to the highest standards of governance and many have signed up to voluntary codes of practice, but that, clearly, is not enough to restore public trust in the light of the recent scandals. Public confidence in the charity sector has been eroded. We saw a similar situation in the past in the building sector, where self-regulation meant no regulation. It is not just politicians but also charities which have been calling for regulation of the sector. The setting up of the regulatory authority has not just been welcomed by Members of this House but also by voluntary organisations.

The setting up of a regulatory authority is an important step towards regaining public trust, but it must done properly. The authority will have an enormous role to play in promoting good practices, setting and enforcing standards and restoring public trust. It cannot be yet another body with limited powers. It must be entirely free of conflicts of interest. It must be given the independence to initiate investigations and hold people to account. Organisations or individuals that are under investigation by the authority must be subject to the full rigours of the law. Without the fear of consequences and people feeling they will be held accountable, bad practices will continue, with or without a charities regulator. It is important that we do this properly. It is only by getting it right that we can restore public confidence and fix some of the mess made which has come to light recently. It will enable the thousands of committed, hard-working and decent people who are working in the sector to continue their good work. I commend the work of the Committee of Public Accounts in bringing certain things to light and fully support those working in the sector.

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