Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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36. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality her views on whether section 8 of the Charities Act 2009 is functioning as intended; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24616/16]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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Section 8 of the Charities Act 2009 provides that the Act shall not apply to certain trusts the only property of which consists of: (a) shares in a qualifying company established for the purposes of Section 110 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997; (b) shares in a company whose business consists solely of the leasing of plant and machinery; (c) dividends paid in respect of such shares (being dividends that are not retained as part of the property of the trust for more than 12 months) or; (d) any other distribution of cash or assets made in respect of such shares (being cash or assets that are not retained as part of the property of the trust for more than 12 months).

The Charities Regulatory Authority ('Charities Regulator') has commenced a review of charities on its Register which hold shares in special purpose vehicles established for the purposes of Section 110 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 on trust. The purpose of the review is to determine the most appropriate regulatory approach for these organisations and whether these entities fall within the remit of the Charities Act 2009. It is a statutory requirement and strategic objective of the Charities Regulator to ensure that the Register of Charities is complete and accurate in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2009.

As the Deputy will be aware, the Minister for Finance has announced that he is proposing to amend Section 110 in the forthcoming Finance Bill.