Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)
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Question 91: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs if his attention has been drawn to recent developments at the Christina Noble Children's Foundation which has been the target of a €60,000 fraud at its Dublin office; if this event demonstrates the essential need for the regulation of charities; his plans in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30706/05]

Willie Penrose (Westmeath, Labour)
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Question 95: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs if his attention has been drawn to recent comments from a corporate governance expert (details supplied) that the current regime for charities and the not-for-profit sector is unsatisfactory; his views on whether only a minimal system is in place and that real regulation is required; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30708/05]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Question 104: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the position on the drafting of legislation in regard to the need to regulate charities; the date when this draft legislation will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30684/05]

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 91, 95 and 104 together.

Evidence suggests that the majority of charities in Ireland operate for the public good. However, it is vital for public trust and confidence in the sector to be safeguarded and maintained. Clearly, the lack of a regulatory regime leaves the sector vulnerable to abuses.

In An Agreed Programme for Government, there is a clear commitment to regulation of the charities sector through the enactment of a comprehensive reform of charity law to ensure accountability and to protect against abuse of charitable status and fraud. The new legislation will introduce an integrated system of mandatory registration, proportionate regulation and supervision. The independent regulatory body, to be positioned as the centrepiece of the regulatory regime, will be charged with setting up and maintaining a register of charities.

The proposed content of the new legislation has been the subject of an inclusive, public consultation process, first, in 2004, on the core legislative proposals and then, in 2005, on the specialist aspect of charitable trust law reform. I have already publicly signalled spring-early summer 2006 as our target for publication of the Bill and my Department continues to give priority to the work of advancing this important legislation. I take this opportunity to emphasise that, in addition to statutory regulation, informed and vigilant charity trustees have a crucially important role to play in the general control and management of the administration of their charities.

Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)
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As the Minister of State is aware, in the published list of Government legislation, it states in regard to charity legislation that it is not possible to indicate a date for publication. I recently asked the Tánaiste if this meant the legislation had been abandoned. While the Minister of State has indicated that it will be produced, my major concern is that the Government will go out of office and we will not even see the legislation.

Fifty leaders of community and voluntary organisations were advised at a recent seminar they attended that because of the slowness of the Government in coming up with the legislation, they would have to look to their own governance. One issue that arose is that there is no proper definition of "charity", "charitable organisation", "not-for-profit organisation", or "non-governmental organisation". Speculation again appeared in the media during the period of the recent bombings in London indicating that charities can be used for terrorist purposes. It was stated that the method of fundraising could be as simple as welfare fraud. Is the Minister of State satisfied that this is definitely not happening in the sector in Ireland?

How convinced is the Minister of State that we will see this legislation, bearing in mind that the heads of the Bill have not yet been produced. This will be major legislation. Is the Government just putting a brave face on it while knowing in its heart of hearts that we will not see this legislation, badly needed as it is to regulate a sector that has been crying out for regulation for quite some time? This is not to minimise or underestimate in any way the difficulties involved. My concern is that the matter has dragged on, yet the legislation has failed to come forward with only vague assurances that it will be produced.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I am not responsible, nor are the officials in the charity unit in the Department, for anything that should have happened over the past 40 years. The legislation has not been abandoned. The charity unit was only set up in 2003 and the officials based there are working to the best of their ability on this matter. They are doing great work. It is a small unit that is most effective. I want to get the Bill published well before the summer recess. We may not get it into the Dáil before then but I hope we can bring it forward very quickly after that. I might have a vested interest in getting it passed quickly. When it comes to May or June of the following year, I do not know if I want to be spending endless days on Committee Stage.

Dinny McGinley (Donegal South West, Fine Gael)
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The Minister of State will be on sabbatical.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Once it is published I hope we can make a great deal of progress on it. I and everybody in the unit are committed to getting this done as quickly as possible. I hope the estimate I gave is accurate but delays are possible. We are following the programme for Government. At various times the charities issue came under the remit of the Department of Social and Family Affairs and subsequently the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. Since 2002 it has come under the jurisdiction of the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs.

The UN or international aspect of the legislation is new. Terrorist links in recent years have given rise to a greater need for legislation and the creation of a proper regulatory regime, but it was already a commitment in the programme for Government. I do not know what is going on at present. I believe most charities operate for the public good but anything could be going wrong and until we have proper registration and regulation, we will not know the situation. That is the purpose of enacting the legislation. What has happened in recent years at United Nations level and with the European Union also getting involved gives added weight to the need for us to have updated legislation.

Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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Does the Minister of State accept that the issue of charities regulation is a major public concern and that people demand accountability, openness and transparency? Many charities appear to be project-driven. Does he also accept that the issues of trust and how charities spend their income from the public is a priority?

Does the Minister of State agree that members of the public demand that the money they give to Third World charities is spent on the most needy? Does he accept there is a role for him in rooting out fraud in charities and ensuring that money is spent on those most in need? The Minister of State replied that he did not know what exactly is going on in charities. Is it not part of his responsibility to know that, especially when taxpayers donate significant sums of money to charities every year?

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I wish the Deputy would listen to me. I said that what we are doing in the Department is bringing in new legislation to update the law on charities and introduce a proper regulatory regime. The sector is unregulated, there is no body with the specific aim of supervision and there is no registration. While the Revenue Commissioners issue tax exemption certificates, this is not registration, although it is sometimes confused with it. In the absence of registration and pending the passage of the legislation and the introduction of the new regulatory regime, anything could be going on. I agree that most charities are very good and are doing good work. The good ones support the introduction of a proper regulatory regime because it is necessary to ensure public confidence and trust. That is why we are taking the steps I have outlined.

I am not responsible for policing charities at present — the issue is that nobody is. We are relying on the goodwill of the charities. When the legislation is enacted and the regulatory regime is in place, there will be compulsory registration and supervision, and thus charities will be called to account. This will enhance the trust and confidence of the public, which will be to the benefit of everybody in the sector. The good players in the sector realise this.

Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)
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I take the point the Bill will be large and complex. Does the Minister of State see the merit in consulting the spokespersons from the Opposition parties with a view to progressing the agenda, either by making himself or his civil servants available? Thus, when the debate is held in the Dáil — I take the point on long Committee Stages — some measure of agreement will have been reached on some areas in advance. Obviously, there will be some areas regarding which agreement will not be reached. This side of the House would be co-operative in dealing with this vital legislation. If there are ways of shortening its passage through the Dáil and Seanad, we should avail of them. In spite of what I heard from the Minister of State, I am concerned the Government will have left office before the legislation can be passed in the Oireachtas.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I note the Deputy's concerns and his offer. I will take up the offer at the appropriate time and consult him when we are discussing the specifics. Thus far, people outside the House have been happy with and supportive of the proposed Bill, although I am sure that when it is published and we are dealing with the specifics, some groups will not be happy with every provision therein. I thank the Deputy for his offer and I will certainly take it up and consult him, perhaps nearer the publication date.

Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)
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I thank the Minister of State.