Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is critical that confidence is maintained in the charities sector and that the members of the public have confidence when they make a donation to fundraising that it will be used properly and appropriately. Concerns arose about another charity in the recent past and the previous Government ensured a charities regulator was put in place. It is distressing for people who support an organisation such as Console, which deals with the sensitive issue of suicide and supporting families, that trust has been broken in this way. I am concerned about the ongoing reports following last week's "Prime Time" broadcast. The HSE audited Console in the recent past, which brought some of the concerns to light. That demonstrates the robustness of the HSE structure in respect of charities. The priority for the executive is to ensure the ongoing provision of services and if anything further arises to disrupt them, it will step in.

The Charities Regulatory Authority is in the business of registering and regulating charities. More than 4,500 charities have registered with it. I can confirm that the authority and the UK Charities Regulatory Authority are both engaging with Console. I can also confirm that the authority's chief executive officer, Mr. John Farrelly, has been active on this and he has been in ongoing contact with its trustees and is seeking formal written undertakings from them to assure the authority, via the provision of a report, that the property and the finances of the charity are secure and subject to robust corporate governance, that allegations of financial impropriety will be investigated that a full report on that will be issued to the authority and that they will consent to the authority applying, if required, its powers to assign new trustees to the charity to assist the current board in its work. It is clear, therefore, that the regulator is playing an active role. He has also sought reports from An Garda Síochána and is working with the force. He has asked RTE for any assistance it can give. There has been a robust response, as is appropriate, to the allegations that have arisen because it is essential that confidence is maintained in the NGO and charities sectors and the authority is in a position to carry out its functions in this regard. The Garda may have a separate role if there are other allegations.

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