Charity law in UK

by New Worldly Translation 3 Replies latest members politics

  • New Worldly Translation
    New Worldly Translation

    I tend to follow politics off and on, you know watching Newsnight, Question Time that sort of thing. One new draft bill I have heard mentioned is the overhaul of the Charities Bill in the UK. It's the first time it's been rewritten in 400 years apparently and the gov. are doing it because of a large increase in charities with dubious aims and benefits to the community. Now I'm pretty sure the WBTS is a registered charity in the UK which would mean they could dodge tax and also funnel profits to the main branch of the org in the US easier as the accounting procedures are quite lax compared to companies.

    Now the new law that is being considered means that charities must prove that the services they provide are for the public good. Their accounting procedures must also be more transparent. I got to thinking that because the gov will be looking closely at the WBTS and what they do, they would obviously appreciate info from people in the know (i.e. us) I've always felt the charity certificate wasn't really deserved by the org as their aims are purely selfish and are not of benefit to the vast majority of the UK population. I believe the new law is due to come in shortly after the general election. I'm no expert on law and I would appreciate any feedback on whether warning the gov about the dangers of the JW cult would be useful or not or just any comments. I know it's not going to bring the org down or anything but I think it would cause a bit of a stir.

  • Gadget
    Gadget
    the new law that is being considered means that charities must prove that the services they provide are for the public good.

    If I remember rightly one the services that qualify as a charity under the new rules is connected with religious institutions and furthering knowledge of that religion, which the wbts will qualify for easily.

    It'll be interesting if they have to make their financial details more transparent though.

  • New Worldly Translation
    New Worldly Translation

    Ahh, right. Yeah having looked closer at the draft the furtherance of religion is staying in unchanged. Thanks for the feedback.

    Back to the old drawing board I suppose

  • diamondblue1974
    diamondblue1974

    NWT whilst I agree with you to some extent the charities act itself does impose some regulatory conditions not applicable to companies, I believe that the Charities Commission demand an annual report just as Companies House do so they do have some hoops to jump through beyond a what a normal company would be expected to do. Although this is the case the tax situation you mention is a very pertinent point and do not agree that they are a bono fide charity as they purport; perhaps the draft bill will assist in this respect.

    Job well done for keeping an eye out

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