Seanad Urged to Amend Charities Bill; Charity Trustees Require Protection too

Unless Senators alter the proposed Charities Bill that comes before the Seanad this week, the Charity sector in Ireland will be unable to protect its Trustees. This is the contention being made by Respond! Housing Association, one of the largest charities in Ireland. The Bill fails to provide specific protection to voluntary Directors who are exposed to personal liability due to the failure of public or state bodies to honour previously agreed funding agreements. The housing charity asserts that this will discourage volunteerism and put Trustees at unnecessary risk.

Pat Cogan, Chief Executive Officer, Respond! contends that a vital amendment to protect Trustees needs to be added to the Bill.
“At the moment, the Bill offers no protection for Directors or Trustees in relation to bona fide agreements with public bodies. We feel this lack of protection will do untold harm to the charity sector. Voluntary Directors or Board members will become a thing of the past if they were to be held personally liable when public or state bodies withdraw previously agreed funding. It is important to note that we do not expect this protection to apply to all financial agreements, only those entered into with public or state bodies, for example the HSE.”

The housing charity feels this protection is crucial for anyone involved in the charity sector. Given the frequency with which state bodies withdraw funding from charities, Respond! insist that it is absurd to expect a voluntary Board member to be held personally liable. Charities committing themselves to crucial services in the community generally deliver these services on a deficit-funding basis. In reality, this means that Charities enter into agreements with state or public bodies, deliver the services and are then reimbursed.

“Charities enter into agreements in good faith” added Pat Cogan, ofm. “However, from our experience, both parties do not always fulfil their commitments. It is far too easy for a state or public body to withdraw previously agreed funding and this may happen more frequently in the future. Respond! is simply seeking an assurance that when the Government withdraws funding from an organisation, it is not the voluntary Board of Directors who will be held financially liable. Protection for Charity Trustees acting in good faith is a feature of the British Charities Act so it seems more than reasonable to be a part of the Irish Charities Bill” concluded Pat Cogan, ofm.

Respond! is Ireland’s largest housing association. The organisation seeks to create a positive future for people by alleviating poverty and creating vibrant, socially integrated communities. They do this through providing access to education, childcare, community development programmes, housing and other supports. Respond! has constructed more than 4000 units of accommodation nationwide, with a further 1000 under construction.