Sector commentators have lined up to condemn the omission of lifetime legacies from the Giving White Paper.
While representatives from charities, umbrella bodies and professional advisers have broadly welcomed the White Paper, congratulating the government on “excellent ideas”, “tangible action” and “a big step in the right direction”, many also highlighted the fact that lifetime legacies failed to get a mention.
Clive Cutbill, partner at Withers law firm, said: “We are disappointed that the government has not heeded the sector’s call to consult on lifetime legacies, a mainstay of US giving that is currently tax-inefficient in the UK.”
John Low (pictured), chief executive of the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), said: “We are pleased that the role of tax incentives has been acknowledged and look forward to working with government to encourage greater use of these important reliefs, including payroll giving. However, we hope that reform in this area will continue and that government will not miss the opportunity to further charitable giving through initiatives such as lifetime legacies.”
Thomas Hughes-Hallett, chairman of the Philanthropy Review, added: “We call on government to continue to introduce new measures to encourage more people to give and people to give more. The question of lifetime legacies for example, and whether they hold the key to unlocking significant contributions from the high net worth community, remains unanswered.”
Fundraising domination by large charities
There were other complaints, too. The Community Foundation Network is to share in a £1m pot to develop local web portals for philanthropists. But CFN chief executive Stephen Hammersley complained that the White Paper didn’t address the domination of the fundraising market by large charities. “Ninety 90 per cent of all money donated goes to less than 10 per cent of charities,” he said. “We call on the government to make sure that the activity that is described in the White Paper opens up new opportunities for neighbourhood charities as well as national ones.”
John Low said the government should have encouraged ministers to pledge money as well as time, helping to shape social norms around giving.
In its response statement, CSV welcomed the injection of some money towards volunteering in England but added: “At this point we are very unclear where and how that money will be spent to support volunteering and local social action.”
The volunteering charity also said: “We particularly welcome the notion of the Social Action Fund because we have always recognised the importance of reaching the most marginalised people and deprived areas in the country. However, £10m is a very small amount to meet this important challenge.”
Minimum payout for foundations
However, the decision not to pursue a Green Paper proposal for a minimum payout for foundations was welcomed. Withers’ Cutbill was “delighted” at this development: “This would have been wholly inappropriate to the UK’s legal and regulatory landscape, and would have been a short-term fix with potential long-term consequences.”
