There is no clear definition of what a charity is in Irish law. Research into reform of the sector has been carried out, but no new charity legislation has been enacted for over 40 years.
The Revenue Commissioners decide whether a body receives charitable status and something in the region of 5,000 such bodies are listed on the Department's website. They are obliged to produce accounts and to have them available for inspection on request by the Revenue.
However, overall responsibility for the charity sector currently rests, oddly, with the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, whose Minister of State, Mr Noel Ahern, is presiding over a consultation process for the largely unregulated sector.
Announcing his plans in February, he said the lack of modern, up-to-date legislation left the charities sector "wide open to a variety of abuses, both nationally and internationally, such as money laundering, fraud \ embezzlement.
"I believe that the invaluable role that charities play in Irish society must be protected in a balanced way, which will not stifle the dynamism of the sector. I am confident that charities will seize this opportunity to improve their sector by contributing pro-actively to the design of the reform."
The Minister notes some areas of charitable fundraising are particularly vulnerable to abuse under the current system. He cites "modern methods" of fundraising such as selling tokens like flowers, toys and lapel pins, which don't need a permit from the Garda. Nor is a permit needed for collecting promises of money, such as standing orders or direct debits.
The absence of regulation means a potential "open season" for abuse of charitable status and fraud, according to Ahern.
He also notes there is no reliable information on the number of active charities, on their financial worth and on how they spend their funds. There is no requirement to show where donations come from, how much money is received or what it is spent on and, worse perhaps, there is no legal obligation to spend donations on the charitable purposes they were collected for.
There is no requirement to show what percentage of donations is spent on areas such as administration, advertising, professional fundraisers, etc, although all of these health charities clearly operate a policy of transparency on such matters.
Proposals outlined in the consultation paper on charities reform include the formulation of a statutory definition of what a charity is, proposals for a single, comprehensive piece of legislation governing the sector, the introduction of an independent, statutory body with powers to ensure compliance and a register of charities with a statutory obligation on all charities to register.
The consultation paper and other information are available on www.pobail.ie
Submissions must be received no later than Friday May 28th.