LONDON (dpa-AFX) - The UK Government has announced plans to strengthen the Charity Commission's powers to close down charities that promote extremism and protect the vast majority of the sector delivering positive work.
This is in addition to an imminent consultation that will road-test plans to ban leaders who use their positions to promote violence or hatred. Individuals with a criminal conviction for hate crime will be banned from serving as charity trustees or senior managers.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has asked officials to work with the regulator to speed up the process for investigating charities suspected of engaging in extremist behavior, including strengthening its powers to close them down if needed. This includes processing decisions more quickly and reviewing the appeals process.
Further measures under consideration include mandatory trustee ID verification, the digitization of charity accounts, and a strengthening of local authority powers to issue fines and take other enforcement action to tackle unlicensed street fundraising.
Since October 2023, the Charity Commission has opened over 400 regulatory cases for hate speech, and made around 70 referrals to police where criminal offences may have been committed, th UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport said.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said, 'Charities are the lifeblood of our communities, and we will not allow extremists to hijack their good name'.
'By giving the Charity Commission the teeth it needs to act fast and decisively, we will close the door on those who exploit charitable status to spread hate, and open a new chapter that gives the sector the protection it deserves'.
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