Mary Ann O'Brien (Independent)

Senators may be aware the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government reconvened the forum on philanthropy in June 2011 and set it the task of increasing the level of philanthropic and charitable giving, along with developing fund raising capacity and best practice across the sector. The forum's findings and recommendations are contained in a report which was launched yesterday in the National Library by the Taoiseach and the Minister. The report makes four main recommendations which will be implemented over the next four years. The recommendations are as follows: a national giving campaign aimed at the public, high net worth individuals and corporations in Ireland; improving the fiscal environment and incentivising greater giving; developing better fund raising capacity, education and training among not-for-profit organisations; and creating a national social innovation fund supported by the Government and the philanthropic sector.

The publication of the report and the objectives set out in it must be welcomed and I encourage the Government to implement its recommendations at the earliest opportunity. As the Minister noted yesterday, while there is a strong awareness of the value that not-for-profit organisations bring to our quality life, the economic impact of the sector is often overlooked. The not-for-profit sector in Ireland employs more than 100,000 people and has an annual turnover of €5.7 billion, which means it is bigger than the IT and pharmaceutical sectors. The not-for-profit and charity sector generates €3.7 billion in wages and salaries and €290 million in employers' PRSI per annum. Moreover, funding channelled into the sector goes straight to work in every city, town and parish across country, thereby boosting local employment.

However, I fear the Government is putting the cart before the horse. Noticeable by its absence from the report is a plan to make the not-for-profit and charity sector more transparent. When pressed, the report's authors acknowledged the absence of a regulator for the charity sector. Until a regulator is established along the lines provided for by the Charities Act 2009 the sector's potential will be hampered because the public and the corporate sector will not have full confidence that the moneys given are spent properly. Once again, Ireland is behind the fence in this area because England, Scotland and Northern Ireland have already established fully functioning regulators.

With each passing week, services are being cut and we have no idea where the waste is being produced. Even though the budget for St. Michael's House was cut by €6 million it still has to pay €300,000 in increments this year. Organisations like St. Michael's House have to find savings somewhere but they cannot cut pay or make anyone redundant because of the public sector Croke Park agreement. The Brothers of Charity in Limerick stopped paying increments but the Labour Court ruled that withholding them represented a pay cut and ordered that they be reinstated retrospectively at a cost of €2 million to the charity.

Many charities have evolved into big businesses over the past few years but a statutory body has not yet been established to regulate them. In 2008 and 2009 the Houses of the Oireachtas went to huge efforts to introduce the Charities Act in order to provide the transparency and accountability which are badly needed to enhance public trust and confidence. I call on the Leader to ask the Minister when we are going to revisit that legislation and when will it be enacted.