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| LICENSING
RULES FOR CHARITY COLLECTIONS SET TO BE MODERNISED |
10/09/03 |
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Proposals
to regulate charity collections have been unveiled by the Home Office charities
minister, Fiona Mactaggart.
The aim is to produce a new integrated licensing scheme for public charitable
collections which would:
- create a fair and cost effective system of licensing, which continues
to encourage responsible fundraising while deterring bogus collections and
preventing public nuisance;
- update complex, outdated and fragmented legislation, making it easier
for those organising collections to understand and for licensing authorities
to implement effectively;
- provide fair access to collecting opportunities to all eligible organisations;
and
- have the same rules for house-to-house and street collections and prevent
licensing authorities applying rules differently in different areas of England
and Wales.
Mactaggart says: "Many thousands of charities in Britain are active on a
huge range of issues, helping to transform people's lives and to revive
communities.
"The charitable and not-for-profit sector in this country is one of our
greatest assets. Public trust and confidence is vital to its continued success,
and its success is essential for the health of our democracy. It is through
charities and voluntary organisations that many people contribute to progress
and change.
"We need fair, transparent regulation which facilitates responsible fundraising,
but deters bogus collectors and prevents nuisance to the public. This will
help protect the good name of the voluntary and community sector.
"I am confident that we will devise a workable scheme to maintain and
even improve the level of trust and confidence which people feel in our
charitable sector."
The proposals cover collections for charitable, philanthropic and benevolent
purposes and do not suggest charging for licences. They would introduce
an exemption for small local collections and extend the rights of appeal
if someone feels a license has been unfairly refused or revoked.
The proposed framework would also consider:
- improving the standard of information organisers have to submit when they
make an application for eligibility to collect;
- the basic safeguards needed to secure collection proceeds;
- how collection organisers might ensure that collectors are fit and proper;
and
- record keeping and local authority monitoring.
The consultation will run from 9 September to 2 December and is available
at www.homeoffice.gov.uk/inside/consults/current/index.html
or by calling 020 7035 5352.
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