Console is ‘unlikely to survive’ scandals

The future of Console is in grave doubt and it is unlikely to survive the wave of scandals washing over it, according to senior sources working closely with the Charities Regulatory Authority.

One source who spoke to The Irish Times on condition of anonymity said they could not see any way the charity could survive.

“The service offered by an organisation such as this needs to be offered on the basis that all of the governance is sound and that has clearly not been the case,” the source said.

“It will be very difficult if not impossible to put this organisation back together but there are other organisations who can take over. That will not be easy but it is doable.”

The interim chief executive of Console, David Hall, has already said the charity cannot survive without the support of the HSE. But he said: “The service will be kept open, whatever has to happen.”

‘Absolute nightmare’

Seán Malone, the chief executive of Alone – a charity that works with older people – described unfolding events as “an absolute nightmare” but he expressed the hope that when the dust settles, the sector might benefit.

“If it gets people talking more, and in more depth, about transparency and openness, then that is good thing,” he said.

He questioned the manner in which scandals emerging from the charity sector are handled.

“If somebody does something wrong in the private-sector – let’s say a businessman defrauds a company of a lot of money – all business people are not tarred with the same brush. It probably won’t even make the news. But if somebody in the charitable sector does something wrong then we all seem to be targeted.”

He said the scandal would lead to a lot of anger both within the sector and among the public at large. He stressed that “every penny Alone spends is accounted for and results are expected from all our spending.”

Frances Black, the newly elected Senator and founder of the Rise Foundation, which help families of alcoholics and drug addicts, has raised money for Console. She said she was "heartbroken" by the events of recent weeks.

Paul Kelly sat on the board of Rise but Ms Black stressed he had never received any money and his role was nominal.

“This is so heartbreaking for a lot of people,” she said.

‘No reflection on staff’

“I am shocked and disappointed but we need to remember the revelations are to do with the governance of Console and they are no reflection of what the staff and the volunteers do.

“The staff and all the therapists provide a great service.”

She said she did not know if Console could survive the scandal and suggested that the charities working in the area could come together “because this is a very important service and it is one we need”.

“Suicide is devastating so many families. Only people who have lost someone to suicide know the devastation it brings. A lot of families have got great solace from Console. What has happened has been horrendous but we should hang on to the positive instead of the negatives.”

She also criticised the charity sector for paying senior executives too much. “I don’t think people who work in the charity sector at the top level should get paid as much as they do. When I think about it €140,000 would keep our foundation going for a full year and that is the salary some senior people in other charities are earning. It is just too much.”