The Republic of Ireland last week announced emergency plans to set up a charity regulator by Easter this year, following a national scandal at a disability charity.
The Irish Department of Justice and Equality plans to have an interim chief executive and a number of other staff in place next month at the new Charities Regulatory Authority, it said in a statement last week. It has asked for expressions of interest from individuals interested in joining the board.
The Irish government introduced legislation to create a charity regulator in the Charities Act 2009, but did not set one up for cost reasons.
Last year it consulted on “the phased implementation of the Charities Act, with the establishment of the Regulatory Authority initially on a small scale”.
The regulator will require charities to pay “modest and proportionate annual registration fees” to cover some of the costs of this new system of regulation, the department said.
It said that “an early priority” for the new authority will be the creation and publication of a statutory register of charities.
“All registered charities will be required to provide reports to the authority each year on their activities and these reports will be made available to the public,” it said. “This will provide a much needed increase in transparency and accountability in the charitable sector.”
The decision to set up the CRA was prompted by public outcry over a €742,000 pay off for Paul Kiely, the chief executive of the Central Remedial Clinic, a national centre for the care, treatment and development of children and adults with physical disabilities.
The CRC receives income both from the state and donations. Kiely’s pay off was equal to almost half the donations received in the year, according to reports in Irish national newspapers.
"The recent revelations about certain organisations in the charitable sector have understandably damaged public trust and confidence,” said Alan Shatter, the minister for justice and equality. “The commencement of the key measures in the Charities Act will provide the increased transparency and accountability that will allow this trust to be rebuilt.”
