Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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1679. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if he will provide an update on the commencement of the sections of the Charities (Amendment) Act 2024 relating to the advancement of human rights; the timeframe he is working towards with respect to same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29486/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Charities (Amendment) Act, 2024 (the ‘Act’) was signed into law by the President on 10th July 2024.

The Act seeks to improve the ability of the Charities Regulator to conduct its statutory functions, providing greater transparency, clarity, and fairness in terms of the regulation of charities, leading to greater public trust and confidence in the sector.

The individual sections of the Act will be commenced in a timely and efficient manner, taking into account the operational impacts on the Charities Regulator and the charity sector respectively.

The first commencement order to be introduced under the Act, S.I. No. 10 of 2025, was published on the Irish Statute book on 24th January 2025, with a commencement date of 27th January 2025.

My Department is engaging with the Charities Regulator to establish the timeline to progress the preparatory work required to facilitate the commencement of the remaining sections of the Act. In this context, the introduction of the ‘the advancement of human rights’ as a charitable purpose will require significant engagement with sectoral stakeholders and the Charities Regulator is preparing proposals in this regard.