Many religious charities do fantastic work.
But many others fail to provide a public benefit and some cause harm.
It's time to end religious privilege in charity law.
Charity work carried out by people of all faiths and none should be recognised and celebrated. Much of the work of religious charities, such as helping the poor, is secular in nature and beneficial to society.
But there are religious organisations which exploit the privileged status of religion in charity law to conduct activities that do not fulfil a genuine public benefit, and only serve to further religious ideology.
In the worst cases, religious charities may harm society and individuals.
Registered charities must serve a purpose recognised as "charitable". Charity laws specify a list of "charitable purposes," one of which is "the advancement of religion".
Charities must also demonstrate that they provide a genuine public benefit. But guidelines are vague on what constitutes a public benefit, particular in relation to religious activities. There is still an assumption in the charity system that religion is inherently beneficial. This view is not supported by evidence and implies those without a religion are somehow less moral or charitable.
The inclusion of the advancement of religion within charitable purposes gives religion a privileged position in the charity sector. It enables religious organisations to acquire all the benefits of charitable status, including tax relief, gift aid and public respectability, simply by "advancing religion".
It also includes religious organisations that cause harm to society. This includes charities which facilitate religious genital cutting, support the non-stun slaughter industry, and promote extremism, hatred and intolerance of other people.
The NSS believes all charities, religious or not, should be held to equally high standards. That's why we campaign for "the advancement of religion" to be removed from the list of charitable purposes, and for religious charities to be held to the same equality laws as all other charities.
Take action!
1. Write to your MP
Tell your MP it's time for "the advancement of religion" to be removed as a charitable purpose. Enter your postcode below to find your MP and send a letter to them.
2. Share your story
Tell us why you support this campaign, and how you are personally affected by the issue. You can also let us know if you would like assistance with a particular issue.
3. Join us
Become a member of the National Secular Society today! Together, we can separate religion and state for greater freedom and fairness.
Latest updates
NSS welcomes intervention at charity accused of promoting extremism
Posted: Fri, 18 Sep 2020 12:32
The Charity Commission has appointed an interim manager who will "consider the future viability of" Islamic Research Foundation International, a charity accused of promoting Islamist extremism.
The regulator said it had "serious concerns" about the administration of IRFI as it announced the move this week.
Earlier this year the commission opened a statutory inquiry into the charity, which aims to advance the Islamic faith by funding the Peace TV network.
The National Secular Society has repeatedly raised concerns about IRFI over the last two years.
The chair of IRFI's listed trustees, Zakir Naik (pictured), has been banned entry to the UK over security concerns.
Last year the Charity Commission said it had disqualified Naik as a trustee, but added that he was challenging the decision.
The NSS questioned Naik's involvement with IRFI in a letter to the commission in 2018.
The broadcasting regulator Ofcom revoked the licence of Peace TV Urdu's broadcaster, Club TV, last year after it found the channel had "repeatedly rebroadcast" material that incited murder.
Earlier this month Ofcom also fined Peace TV's former broadcasters £300,000 for breaches of its broadcasting code.
As part of her work the interim manager will be tasked with considering the future viability of the charity.
NSS comment
NSS spokesperson Megan Manson welcomed the commission's intervention.
"This organisation has long been a cause of concern due to its apparent promotion of extremist propaganda via Peace TV, and for having a trustee who has been banned entry to the UK over security concerns.
"If the commission's inquiry finds IRFI doesn't serve a public benefit, it shouldn't be a charity at all."
Other NSS involvement
- In December the NSS found that the commission had received five complaints about IRFI in the last nine years.
- The NSS also raised IRFI's record in its 2019 report For the public benefit?, which called for reform of charity law so 'the advancement of religion' was no longer a charitable purpose. (See pages 32-33 for detail on IRFI).
Image: Dr Zakir Naik, via Wikimedia Commons, © Maapu [CC BY-2.0] (cropped)
Regulator escalates inquiry into ‘plague protection kits’ church
Posted: Fri, 28 Aug 2020 10:29
The Charity Commission has stepped up an inquiry into a church whose bishop sold 'plague protection kits' made of oil and string during the coronavirus outbreak.
England and Wales's charity regulator has opened a statutory inquiry into The Kingdom Church GB, almost five months after the National Secular Society raised concerns about the kits.
The commission opened a regulatory compliance case into the south London-based charity when the NSS brought the issue to its attention in April.
Justification for statutory inquiry
According to Third Sector, it has now elevated this to a statutory inquiry after its initial investigations uncovered issues with the charity's finances.
The commission said it had concerns about the accuracy of information provided to it about the charity's income and expenditure.
The statutory inquiry will examine issues including the church's relationship with a group called Bishop Climate Ministries. This shares the same address as the church and is run by the church's bishop Irugu Wiseman – also known as Bishop Climate.
Sale of 'protection kits'
In March a post on the Bishop Climate Ministries website promoted the protective power of "the Divine Plague Protection Oil" and "Scarlet Yarn".
The post originally included claims that "every coronavirus and any other deadly thing" would "pass over" those using the oil and yarn.
It was later edited to remove some specific references to coronavirus, but continued to claim people could "be saved from every pandemic" by using the oil and string.
Kingdom Church's website linked to an online shop, which carried the same post.
Local paper Southwark News reported that the kits were originally on sale for £91.
A disclaimer was later added to the posts to say they were "solely under Bishop Climate Ministries and Not the Kingdom Church" (sic).
NSS response
An NSS spokesperson said the opening of the inquiry was "an encouraging step".
"The Charity Commission must ensure charities are held to account when they engage in exploitative, unethical and harmful behaviour – regardless of their religious ethos.
"This case is also a reminder that charity law needs reform. The assumption that advancing religion is inherently beneficial is currently embedded in charity law, but in cases such as this the opposite appears to be true.
"Trust in the charity sector shouldn't rely on regulators firefighting when apparent examples of significant wrongdoing emerge. The law should ensure all charities have to provide a genuine public benefit, including religious charities."
The NSS's campaign for charity law reform
- The Charities Act of 2011 outlines 13 purposes which charities can pursue to ensure they provide a public benefit. One of those is 'the advancement of religion'.
- Last year the NSS published a major report making the case for 'the advancement of religion' to be removed from the list. Under the NSS's proposals religious charities which benefit the public would retain their status, but all charities would be required to pass a secular public benefit test.
The Kingdom Church's charitable purpose
- The Kingdom Church is registered as a charity with the purpose of advancing the Christian faith and "other such charitable purposes as are beneficial to the community".
Image via Bishop Climate Ministries.
