Appointment of charities regulator welcomed
People involved in fundraising have welcomed the appointment of an interim charities regulator, but said there must be no further delays in establishing a register of all charities.
Justice Minister Alan Shatter has begun a recruitment process for the Charities Regulatory Authority which is expected to be formally established later this year, and is aimed at ensuring charities are more accountable to those who donate money to them.
It follows controversies surrounding payments to senior staff at a number of high profile charities, including the Central Remedial Clinic (CRC) which it’s feared has seriously damage public trust in the sector.
Fundraising Ireland, the association for professional fundraisers, has welcomed the appointment of Úna Ní Dhubhghaill, a serving senior civil servant, as the interim chief executive.
Her appointment follows an internal competitive recruitment process, and will be paid according to the principal officer higher scale.
Fundraising Ireland said the not-for-profit sector has been calling for a Charities Regulator for six years now, and her appointment was “an important first step in increasing trust and confidence in the management of the Irish charity sector.”
But chief executive, Anne Hanniffy, said it was “critical” that the open recruitment of a permanent CEO happened quickly and that the new body was “adequately resourced to do the important job it is being mandated to do.”
Minister Shatter has sought expressions of interest to fill the board of the authority, and said a chairperson will be appointed before Easter. One of the first tasks for the authority will be the development and publication of a Register of Charities under the terms of the Charities Act.
As well as the chief executive, an initial staff of ten will be appointed from within the existing staff of the Department of Justice.
According to the minister, the aims of the new authority are to:
-Increase public trust and confidence in the management and administration of charities.
-Promote compliance by charity trustees with their duties in the control and management of donations.
-Promote the effective use of the property of charitable trusts or charities.
-Ensure the accountability of charitable organisations to donors and beneficiaries of charitable gifts, and the public.
-Promote understanding of the requirement that charitable purposes confer a public benefit.
-Establish and maintain a register of charitable organisations,
-Carry out investigations in accordance with this act.
-Publish information and statistics about charities and provide advice or make proposals to the Government.
