The Charity Commission has been urged to clamp down on “BNP organisations masquerading as veterans charities” by a group of former senior army generals.
The call came in a letter signed by General Sir Mike Jackson and General Sir Richard Dannatt, former heads of the army; Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank, former chief of defence staff, and Major-General Patrick Cordingley, commander of the Desert Rats in the Gulf War. The letter, widely reported in the national press, warns that the armed forces are in danger of being hijacked by far-right extremists “for their own dubious ends”.
It is the start of a campaign launched this week to highlight the British National Party’s strategy of cloaking itself in the military.
Earlier this month The Times reported that the BNP has made a point of targeting veteran charities with offers of support. It has also highlighted on its website, individual donations by its members to organisations including the Royal British Legion and the Gurkha Welfare Trust.
A Charity Commission spokesperson said: "The Charity Commission is aware of the press coverage regarding Nothing British about the BNP's report, Stolen Valour, in which the Commission is mentioned. We have obtained a copy of the report and will be responding directly to Nothing British on the points that they have raised.
"Charities should usually seek to maximise their income. However, in some circumstances trustees may decide that it would not be in the best interests of their charity to accept a donation, if this would damage the charity’s reputation or its ability to do its good work would be compromised. Trustees should be able to demonstrate how and why they have made any such decision and the Commission is happy to advise in such cases.
"There is nothing in charity law that prohibits members of a political party from establishing and/or being the trustee of a charity. However, no charity can have political purposes or support a political party. All trustees must act only in the charity’s best interests and must not represent the interests of any outside organisation or their own personal interests. To do otherwise would be a breach of trust.
"‘Soldiers off the Street’ is not a registered charity, and must not claim to be a registered charity. We have not received any application to register from an organisation by that name. Any application to register as a charity would be considered in line with the registration criteria as set out on our website. In order to register, charities must be established for exclusively charitable purposes for the public benefit and must not have any political purpose."
Charity Finance
Showing posts with label Gurkha Welfare trust. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gurkha Welfare trust. Show all posts
October 21, 2009
September 20, 2009
Alert over BNP cash for Scottish charities
Scotland’s leading fund-raising body has warned charities to beware of undeclared donations from the British National Party after a number of good causes claimed they were duped into accepting money from the far-right group.
The Institute of Fundraising Scotland (IFS) said that suspicious donors should be vetted after the BNP was accused of giving to charities under false pretences.
The BNP website claims it has given funds to charities including the Gurkha Welfare Trust, the Down’s Syndrome Association and Troop Aid. However, the charities say they have never knowingly accepted money from the party. They believe the money was given by individuals who did not declare their BNP affiliation. They intend to ask the BNP to remove any reference to them from its website.
The BNP’s supposed charitable work emerged after its Scottish branch said it had donated money to a Lanarkshire-based charity for ex-servicemen.
The IFS said organisations should be wary of BNP activities. “We would advise charities to ask questions if they have any suspicions about an individual,” said a spokesman. “If an individual raises money from the public and donates it to a charity without being open about their link to the BNP then that would be in breach of one of our codes.”
Colonel William Shuttlewood, a director of the Gurkha Welfare Trust, said it would never knowingly accept money from the BNP. He said: “We are very firmly a non-political organisation and we want to keep it that way, especially when Gurkhas themselves are a political issue.”
The BNP also claimed it had raised more than £4,000 for Troop Aid, which supports injured service personnel. Al Sutton, chairman of Troop Aid, said: “We are not associated with any political party, especially the BNP.”
The Down’s Syndrome Association denied a claim on the BNP website that it had asked the party to help it raise funds.
Last month the BNP said it had given money to FEBA, a Scottish veterans charity. Tommy Moffat, the charity’s founder, said he did not know he was dealing with the BNP when he was approached. He felt he had to accept the money as his organisation was in dire need.
The Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator advised charities to decline donations that might conflict with their work.
John Walker, a spokesman for the BNP, said: “The money is raised by individual BNP members sometimes at party meetings but it is not party money. They are donating as private individuals. The BNP supports these charities and we are just trying to raise money among our membership for them.”
Times Online
The Institute of Fundraising Scotland (IFS) said that suspicious donors should be vetted after the BNP was accused of giving to charities under false pretences.
The BNP website claims it has given funds to charities including the Gurkha Welfare Trust, the Down’s Syndrome Association and Troop Aid. However, the charities say they have never knowingly accepted money from the party. They believe the money was given by individuals who did not declare their BNP affiliation. They intend to ask the BNP to remove any reference to them from its website.
The BNP’s supposed charitable work emerged after its Scottish branch said it had donated money to a Lanarkshire-based charity for ex-servicemen.
The IFS said organisations should be wary of BNP activities. “We would advise charities to ask questions if they have any suspicions about an individual,” said a spokesman. “If an individual raises money from the public and donates it to a charity without being open about their link to the BNP then that would be in breach of one of our codes.”
Colonel William Shuttlewood, a director of the Gurkha Welfare Trust, said it would never knowingly accept money from the BNP. He said: “We are very firmly a non-political organisation and we want to keep it that way, especially when Gurkhas themselves are a political issue.”
The BNP also claimed it had raised more than £4,000 for Troop Aid, which supports injured service personnel. Al Sutton, chairman of Troop Aid, said: “We are not associated with any political party, especially the BNP.”
The Down’s Syndrome Association denied a claim on the BNP website that it had asked the party to help it raise funds.
Last month the BNP said it had given money to FEBA, a Scottish veterans charity. Tommy Moffat, the charity’s founder, said he did not know he was dealing with the BNP when he was approached. He felt he had to accept the money as his organisation was in dire need.
The Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator advised charities to decline donations that might conflict with their work.
John Walker, a spokesman for the BNP, said: “The money is raised by individual BNP members sometimes at party meetings but it is not party money. They are donating as private individuals. The BNP supports these charities and we are just trying to raise money among our membership for them.”
Times Online
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