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Friday Jun 23, 2006
Charities Bill
The Charities Bill will get its Second Reading in the Commons on 26 June.
The big controversy concerns the proposed public benefit test that charities would have to meet. Some, like NCVO, think it doesn't go far enough.
NCVO believes that clarity is needed concerning how public benefit will be tested with respect to charities that charge high fees for their services. This will assist all charities that work for the public benefit and create a much-needed level playing field for the whole charitable sector.
At present, the Bill extends the public benefit test to all charities, on the basis of existing case law. However, for charities that charge high fees for their services, this means that they will only have to show that the less well-off are 'not entirely excluded' . This does not go far enough - anyone able to benefit from a charity's service must have a reasonable chance of doing so.
Public schools are the highest profile charities charging high fees. But with the power of their lobby it's hard to imagine that life will be made too difficult for them.
Posted by Tom Green ( 3:57 PM ) Link to this post Comments[0]