The Charity Tribunal will allow the Cup Trust to bring an appeal against the Charity Commission's investigation into the Trust, which has been accused of being set up as a tax avoidance scam. 

Mountstar PTC Ltd, the single corporate trustee of the Cup Trust first lodged an appeal with the Tribunal against the Charity Commission’s decision to open a statutory inquiry into the charity in May, but it was rejected. The Commission had opened the inquiry and appointed an interim manager after concerns were made public that the charity was set up primarily as a gift aid scam. 

But on its first application for appeal against the Commission's decision, the Tribunal had initially said that Mountstar’s claim was “too vague” and instructed it to expand on its grounds for appeal.

Mountstar submitted a detailed statement of grounds and summary of facts at the end of May and principle judge Alison McKenna has now ordered a hearing to take place in September.  The exact date is still to be decided.

Evidence will be mainly made up of witness statements which both parties have been instructed to exchange no later than four weeks before the hearing.

Jonathan Burchfield, a partner at Stone King, was appointed by the Commission as interim manager of the Cup Trust, starting from 26 April. Mountstar remains as trustee but is unable to act with the powers of a trustee while the inquiry is taking place.

The Cup Trust was the subject of a Times investigation which revealed that despite raising £176m in donations in its first two years it had made just £55,000 worth of grants and was seeking to raise further funds through claiming gift aid. HMRC has since confirmed that no schemes of this nature have received gift aid payments.

Following the revelations, the Charity Commission and HMRC were called before the Public Accounts Committee and came under fire for not taking action sooner. MPs have asked the National Audit Office to compile a report on whether the Charity Commission is a fit regulator.