COMBATING FRAUDULENT CHARITY COLLECTIONS (No. 2)

Early day motion 417, tabled 8 March 2001 by Adrian Sanders (Liberal Democrat). Signed by 50 members.

That this House congratulates Thames Valley Police for initiating the landmark prosecution resulting in convictions on 1st March, for large-scale theft, against trustees of Hand of Hope Children's Cancer Fund, which was registered as a charity although, in Crown Counsel's words, it was not in fact a charity at all; notes that several local authorities and retail groups had allowed Hands of Hope to collect, which was not surprising if they followed the Charity Commission's customary advice, including that issued on 12th December 2000, which said that in judging collections people should look out for a registered number and good identification, both of which Hands of Hope could display; welcomes the support already shown by licensing authorities and retail managers for the Charity Check system, which, when anyone enquired about Hands of Hope, advised that it should not be allowed to collect; and urges the Government now to back the continuing spread of the Charity Check system, which has been commended by several eminent organisations, among them the Company of Management Consultants which wrote that 'for the present and probably for foreseeable future the Charity Check solution is the only one that can be implemented to stem the tide of criminal activity in collecting cash from the public'.

Signatures by party: Labour 30, Liberal Democrat 11, Conservative 3, Labour/Co-operative 2, UUP 2, Plaid Cymru 1, Scottish National Party 1.