Got my reply from the UK charities commission...

by oldlightnewshite 26 Replies latest watchtower scandals

• 

  oldlightnewshite

  Got my reply from the UK Charities Commission. I'm not a happy bunny. Basically, they're saying that any crackpot organization can get charitable status as long as they're a religion. We should get a charity going which helps dubs get out of their cult. As long as we disguise it by saying we pray to some imaginary god, we're quids in.

  Dear Mr Oldlightnewshite

  Thank you for your email dated 28 September. I understand that you have concerns about recent publication by the charity, and the charitable status of the organisation. In response I have first set out our role, and then addressed the issues you have highlighted.

  The Commission’s role

  The Charity Commission is the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales. Our role and regulatory remit is to work with charities to ensure that they are accountable, well run and meet their legal obligations under charity law. As a regulator, we have a duty to consider concerns brought to our attention.
  
  However, our statutory powers of intervention are limited and trustees have a broad discretion to manage their charity as they see fit, within charity law and the charity’s own governing document. Additionally, we would not take up complaints where it would be disproportionate to do so, or where another regulator or authority is better placed to examine the concerns.

  Watchtower article

  The Commission is not able to become involved in matters that are outside the scope of our regulatory responsibilities. This includes accusations of possible criminal activity which fall to the Police to deal with.

  I understand that Hampshire Police are considering this incident (as reported in the article you linked from The Independent). As the matter had been reported to, and is being considered by, the Police it is not currently a matter for us. Our role is limited to ensuring that charity trustees properly discharge their legal duties and responsibilities.

  We will need to wait for the Police to conduct any investigation and will therefore not be contacting the charity at this time. If, following any Police investigation there is evidence of a breach of charity law or any evidence that charity trustees have failed to properly discharge their legal duties and responsibilities we will consider what action, if any, to take and would of course treat any such breaches very seriously.

  Charitable status

  For an organisation to be a charity two requirements must be met:

  · It must have objects that are exclusively charitable for the public benefit; and,

  · It must be based in England and Wales.

  The charity is based in England and Wales, with its office in London.

  The object of the charity is: “To advance the Christian religion as practised by the body of Christian persons known as Jehovah’s Witnesses…”. This object is wholly charitable and falls under the charitable purpose of the advancement of religion. Further information about this purpose can be seen on our website.

  In summary the organisation is legally a charity as it continues to meet the requirements of charitable status. Further details regarding these requirements can be seen in our guidance.

  Further information

  I hope that I have explained why the organisation is legally a charity, and that we are not the body responsible for considering the published article at this time.

  Further information about the Commission’s complaints process, including detail on what complaints we can and cannot deal with, can be found in our complaints guidance available here:

  http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/Publications/cc47.aspx .

  Regards

  Charities Dude
• 

  cedars

  Hi OLNS - that's a disappointing response, but well done for writing in.

  When you wrote to them, did you specify the "public benefit" aspect of the Society's work (i.e. there is none)? The words "public benefit" are mentioned once in the reply, but I can't see anything to suggest whether this was raised in your complaint?

  I'm only wondering because it seems to me that the "public benefit" claims that the Society has made regarding its work are misleading at best and deeply fraudulent at worst.

  Cedars
• 

  nugget

  Thank you for trying it is only by exploring possibilities that we know what avenues are successfuol and what are not.If no one has the courage to challenge then we would never know. So in order for the comission to act then the society has to breach charity law. These laws are more likely to be technical issues than moral ones. The charity comission does not assess the morality of a charity only that the books are in order.

  Mind you Al Capone was arrested on tax evasion not for all the murders and other crimes.
• 

  wobble

  OLNS, thanks for posting, I can see their point, the article and any charges arising from it cannot interest them unless they call the status of the charity in to question.

  I think any questioning of the status of the W.T needs to be done on the basis that they do not do anything of public benefit. This needs to be very well presented, as the W.T will come back with crap like, "we teach the illiterate to read " which has been true in very rare cases, (only so the poor soul can read enough of a WT to convince them to start contributing, but still true)

  I agree that setting up a bogus charity under the lax rules and lack of investigation that goes on at resent is very easy, the W.T have done it.

  I wonder if a start could be made by questioning the status of a local Congregation that is registered as a charity, as they all are, asking for specific proof that they do things of benefit to "the public".

  Recruiting for their cult ,even teaching someone to read so they will be a member, is not in fact of benefit to the public,it is only of benefit to the religion.

  I suspect that then the Congregation would get someone to swear that they were a kleptomaniac drug using alcoholic until J.W's came along.

  How do you prove that this reformed individual is not of benefit to the public ???

  The whole thing is difficult beyond words, we know the truth, that they do nothing that the public themselves would say is of benefit, but to get the Commission to recognise this, and act on the WT's fraudulent status, is going to be an uphill struggle to say the least.
• 

  cantleave

  Bloody religion! I am going to start my own cult. Who wants to join? It will invlve lots partying Joyful worship, over-indulgence Food and drink offerings to the great one in the sky and lots of holidays Holy Days.
• 

  shepherd

  No surprise there at all.
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  wobble

  Dear Cantleave, I will have to tone down my life quite a bit, but I will join your cult !
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  Aussie Oz

  So the WT is acceptable as a charity because the WT tell them they are!

  what a crock of shit!

  What a dumb charity commision too i might add...

  Oz
• 

  Little Imp

  Well done for trying - gutted by their response though. We all know that they actually do nothing for charity whatsoever. Their attitude towards others is far from charitable. To me a charitable person looks for the best in people, I have never seen any evidence of this. All they do is bad mouth others.
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  wobble

  Another question that comes to mind regarding the charity stuff, and I have never got a definitive answer to this ,from the Insurance industry.

  But surely the Dubs who go out in FS, and report it to the charity, to fund raise for the charity, are agents for the charity (again, the local congregation, the WT itself would deny agency) , and therefore should be insured on their vehicles for this, fund raisers for other charities are.