Charity Commission chair William Shawcross has written to Sir Stuart Etherington to assure him that the regulator “understands” the continuing concerns that many charities have about the lobbying bill – but stopped short of saying that it “shared” those concerns.
Shawcross was responding to an earlier letter from the NCVO chief asking him to provide evidence to back up a comment he made at a recent conference, that “most of the sector” is happy with the bill now that the government had proposed “significant changes”.
Shawcross had made the assertion in response to a question from charity lawyer Rosamund McCarthy – Sir Stuart’s wife - about whether he “shared” the sector’s concerns about the bill.
In Shawcross’ letter of response to Sir Stuart, he said: “”I do hope that the brief remark I made in immediate response to a question posed to me will not be unhelpful to you or your members.
“The Charity Commission understands the continuing concerns that many charities, including NCVO, have about the potential impact of the Bill on charitable activity if it is enacted as it is currently drafted.”
He went on to remind Sir Stuart that the existing charity law framework, as explained by the Commission’s own guidance, already allows charities much scope to campaign. He said the regulator would continue to follow the passage of the Bill so it is “clear about any change in legislation that has the potential to impact on charity law and regulation”.
Sir Stuart declined to comment on the letter.
First reading of bill in Lords today
The Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Bill will have its second reading in the House of Lords today, and is not expected to get an easy ride from peers.
The House of Lords Constitution Committee has already published a report expressing “significant concerns” about the bill – firstly that it was introduced with “undue haste” and without sufficient time for proper scrutiny, and secondly that its provisions “directly affect the fundamental common law right to freedom of political expression”.
The Committee said: “The present bill directly affects the ability of people and organisations to engage with the government and to participate in political and electoral campaigning.”
Left and Right united against the bill
And a collection of civil society and political groups from all political persuasions have banded together to run an advert (pictured) in The Times and The Daily Telegraph today, urging the Lords to reject the bill.
The ad, supported by organisations as diverse as ConservativeHome, Labourlist.org, Countryside Alliance, League Against Cruel Sports, Christian Aid, and the National Secular Society, among others, states: “We don’t always have the same opinions, but we believe in the freedom to share them. And we’re asking the House of Lords to stand with us against the #lobbyingbill.”
The ConservativeHome blog today carried the headline: “The Lobbying Bill is still a bad law – so much so that Left and Right are uniting against it.”
