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lamented in Parliament for the past two years, (and in the
works since 2002), the Charities Bill has become the Charities
Act 2006, gaining Royal Assent on 8 November.
Provisions in the Act will begin to come into force from
early 2007, the office of the third sector has said, with
an implementation timescale to be published shortly and
a plain English version of the Act also planned for early
2007.
Ed Miliband, minister for the third sector, said: “The
Charities Act will help charities by providing them with
a modern legal and regulatory framework. This will make
it easier for charities to continue their essential work,
while protecting the high levels of confidence that the
public has in them.”
The Act is due to be published “imminently”
at www.opsi.gov.uk/acts.htm
but a guide to the main provisions which affect charities
can be found on the Charity Commission’s website at
www.charity-commission.gov.uk/spr/ca2006prov.asp
The Act does not provide a statutory definition of “public
benefit”, a much contested area of the bill, but does
remove the existing presumption of public benefit for charities
which exist for the relief of poverty, the advancement of
religion and the advancement of education.
Stuart Etherington, chief executive of the NCVO, said:
“Having won the significant shift from both the government
and the Charity Commission on public benefit, it is now
important to monitor progress and ensure that genuine implementation
of the public benefit test is applied.”
The Act also, in theory, reduces the amount of regulation
for smaller charities, allows for greater ease of administration,
and lays out reforms to the Charity Commission - including
increased accountability and independence from ministers.
Of the last point, Suzi Leather, chair of the Charity Commission
said: “[The Charities Act] will enhance both charities
and the Commission’s accountability and independence,
which will help increase public trust and confidence.”
Mike Scott, head of the charities group at Charles Russell,
said: “The arrival of the Charities Act 2006 is not
before time, but will be greeted with relief by most people
active in the charity sector. Let us hope that its effect
in practice will prove to have been worth the wait.”
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