Labour MP Paul Flynn, who is a member of the Public Administration Select Committee, has described the Committee’s new report on public benefit and the Charity Commission as “atrocious” and stated in Parliament that he “profoundly disagrees” with it.
Flynn made clear his feelings about the document as the Committee’s chair, Bernard Jenkin MP, launched the report in the House of Commons yesterday. Jenkins described it as “one of the Committee’s most important reports” but Flynn interrupted him to declare: “I am the only other member of the Committee in the Chamber and I profoundly disagree with this very poor report...it does nothing to add to the reputation of this House.”
The Labour MP used the opportunity to spell out his views on the charitable status of independent schools: “It was hoped that the 2006 Act would change the unfairness whereby Eton and Harrow get a handout from taxpayers whereas ordinary schools in poor areas do not….Ordinary schools are deprived of charity status whereas public schools for the rich and privileged continue to enjoy that status and the related handouts.”
In response, Jenkin said Flynn’s intervention aptly demonstrated the diversity of views on charitable schools and showed why the matter of public benefit and charitable status “should be decided by this House and Parliament, rather than being passed to the Charity Commission to determine”.
Flynn also launched into a tirade about the Plymouth Brethren, which has been denied charitable status by the Charity Commission because of the exclusive nature of many of its activities. Supporters of the Brethren had flooded the Committee with written submissions during its inquiry into the Charities Act and public benefit, and Flynn told the House that its members had also subjected Committee MPs to intensive lobbying.
“Two million pounds was spent and I was personally approached – face to face – more than 50 times, including at my party conference,” he said.
“Around every corner in this House, there were members of that very unpleasant sect waiting to accost us. It was not about religion or charitable status; it was about money.”
Jenkin responded by pointing out that the PASC received firm advice from the Attorney General not to pass comment on the Plymouth Brethren case while it was still subject to a Charity Tribunal challenge and added: “In any case, it is not for PASC to determine the charitable status of individual cases.”
Fraud a potential future inquiry subject
Jenkin also hinted that fraud in the sector might be a possible subject for future investigation by the Committee but added that the problem of tax relief fraud “is as much a failure of HMRC as the Charity Commission”.
“We recommend they work together more closely. What we have to be absolutely clear about is that the Charity Commission cannot start to conduct extensive investigations into the tax affairs of charities and their donors; it simply is not resourced to do so.”
Further redundancies at the Commission
Jenkin concluded the debate by asking the House to join him in thanking the Charity Commissioners and their staff, and let slip that there will be more job cuts to come.
He said: “They are dealing with a vast workload with diminishing resources – like much of the public sector, they have had to suffer extensive redundancies, with more to come – and we rely on their devoted service. We should thank them for everything they do for charities in this country.”
The Charity Commission said it did not want to respond, other than to point out that the spending review has not yet been published by the Treasury and so the regulator does not know yet what its future budget will be.
