Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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101. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the status of his Department's engagement with the Charities Regulator with regard to his review of State agencies that also hold charitable status; if the Attorney General has had an input into this review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38583/18]

Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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The Charities Regulator is an independent authority which was established in October 2014 under the Charities Act 2009. The key functions of the Regulator are to establish and maintain a public register of charitable organisations operating in Ireland and ensure their compliance with the Charities Acts.

In line with section 40 of the Charities Act 2009, all organisations which had been granted charitable status by the Revenue Commissioners when the Charities Regulator was established in October 2014 were automatically entered on the Register of Charities. I understand that there are a number of such charities on the Register of Charities which currently provide government services and/or which are statutory bodies.

Under its business plan for 2018 the Charities Regulator plans to carry out a number of targeted sector reviews, which may include a review of charities which are statutory bodies. Neither my Department nor the Office of the Attorney General has had any involvement in this work.

The Charities Regulator’s 2018 business plan also provided for the publication of a sectorial report, based on an analysis of data held on the Charities Register. This report, which was published in July, analysed issues such as the income and expenditure of the sector, overall economic and social impacts, legal structure and governance, and charitable donations. A copy of the report can be downloaded at