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 calls on Scottish government to reform charity law
Posted: Thu, 28 Mar 2019 17:19
The National Secular Society has called on the Scottish government to remove 'the advancement of religion' as a charitable purpose in response to a consultation.
The Scottish government launched a consultation in January seeking views on "potential improvements" to charity regulation in light of proposals from the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR).
The NSS said the consultation provided "a good opportunity" for the Scottish government to re-examine the 'charitable purposes' under which a charity can register. It said that the government should specifically consider removing 'the advancement of religion' as a charitable purpose.
In its response to the consultation the NSS included its new report, For the public benefit?, which makes the case for removing 'the advancement of religion' as a charitable purpose.
The report cites various examples of religious charities carrying out or facilitating harmful activities that outweigh any public benefit. It highlights the case of Buckfast Abbey Trust, the charity behind the monk-brewed Buckfast Tonic Wine widely associated with violent crime in Scotland.
Megan Manson, campaigns officer at the NSS, said: "This consultation presents an excellent opportunity for Scotland to make improvements to the charitable sector. We welcome many of the proposals put forth that would help the increase transparency, accountability and public confidence in charities.
"This is also an ideal time for Scotland to consider the concept of 'charity' more broadly, and specifically to re-consider the public benefit of giving charitable status to organisations that exist only to advance religion. As our new report argues, advancing religion is not inherently a public benefit and, in some cases, can even harm the public.
"That's why all charities, whatever their religious or secular ethos, should be required to demonstrate a tangible public benefit. Including 'the advancement of religion' as a charitable purpose means that religious charities do not have to demonstrate public benefit to a meaningful degree, because there's still an assumption that religion is in itself beneficial. It's now time to challenge that idea."
The NSS said the OSCR's proposals to publish full annual reports and accounts for all charities on the Scottish charity register would "increase transparency and public confidence", as would its plan to publish the names of trustees on the public register.
The NSS also agreed that criteria for automatically disqualifying trustees and those employed in senior management positions in charities should be extended to match the criteria for England and Wales, as this would "help to protect charities from abuse".
The consultation proposed that the OSCR be given greater powers to issue positive directions to charities, and to de-register charities that persistently fail to submit annual reports and accounts. The NSS supported both proposals as a means of protecting charities from misconduct.
The NSS agreed with a proposal to ensure all charities in the Scottish charity register should have a connection to Scotland.
The consultation also proposed that the OSCR should be able to make inquiries into former trustees and managers of organisations that are no longer charities in cases of serious misconduct. The NSS said this was particularly important in child safeguarding cases, as victims of child abuse are often only able to report what happened to them years after the abuse.
The NSS also highlighted the fact that in Scotland, 59% of the population are non-religious and 60% have never attended church outside of weddings or funerals, according to a 2018 poll.
The consultation closes on Monday.
NSS questions public benefit of Islamic “anti-Ahmadi” charity
Posted: Thu, 21 Mar 2019 17:09
The National Secular Society has questioned why an organisation that displayed literature calling for the killing of Ahmadi Muslims has obtained and retained registered charity status.
A report published by charity regulators on Tuesday said the trustees of Khatme Nubuwwat Centre (KNC) were responsible for a series of failings "amounting to misconduct and/or mismanagement".
KNC, which is based in south London, displayed leaflets written in English which called Ahmadis "enemies of Islam", "wicked" and "a cancer for the Muslim Ummah". They said Ahmadis who refuse to convert to mainstream Islam within three days should face a "capital sentence".
They also stated that Aalami Majlise Tahaffuze Khatme Nubuwwat, a former name for KNC, had been set up "specifically aiming to pursue Qadianis [a derogatory term for Ahmadis] to whatever part of the world they go and expose them by ALLAH's help".
Ahmadi Muslims are a minority sect who have been attacked and persecuted in Pakistan and elsewhere. In 2016 Ahmadi Muslim Asad Shah was murdered by Sunni Tanveer Ahmed in an attack motivated by anti-Ahmadi hatred.
The failings at KNC outlined by the Charity Commission, which regulates charities in England and Wales, also included links to terrorist and extremist groups in Pakistan.
The commission's inquiry found evidence that the charity was being controlled by a Pakistan-based organisation of the same name which has alleged connections to terrorist and extremist groups.
KNC lists its charitable objects as: "to advance the Islamic religion by the provision of a mosque"; "to advance Islamic education for both children and adults"; and "to promote religious harmony by fostering better relations between Muslims and other communities".
The revelation comes just days after the NSS published a major report calling for the advancement of religion to be removed as a charitable purpose.
KNC is also known as Stockwell Green Mosque. It has been registered as a charity since 1990 but was first engaged by the Charity Commission in 2016. That followed a BBC report that leaflets saying Ahmadis should be put to death had been found at Stockwell Green Mosque.
According to the BBC, Stockwell Green Mosque was first accused of helping to promote acts of terror and hate in Pakistan in 2011.
The Charity Commission's report concluded that KNC "was poorly managed" and had "little to no governance infrastructure in place" to assist the trustees in managing the charity. As a result, the commission issued KNC with an official warning, stating that failure to remedy their mismanagement "may lead to further regulatory action being taken by the commission".
Dr James Caron, an academic at SOAS University of London, said: "Khatme Nabuwwat is a one-issue outfit and that one issue is anti-Ahmadi sentiment."
NSS campaigns officer Megan Manson welcomed the commission's intervention, but added that "more needs to be done" to tackle charities promoting harm.
"This charity has been registered since 1990. We have to ask why such a charity was ever registered.
"It is extremely difficult to see how a charity that has displayed leaflets calling for the killing of Ahmadi Muslims could possibly be serving a public benefit.
"As our recent report on religious charities highlights, the charitable purpose of 'the advancement of religion' can sometimes be used as a cloak for organisations to promote extremist, hateful views.
"This is another case that demonstrates why the inclusion of 'religious activities' as a charitable object leads to a loss of public confidence in the whole charity sector.
"The Charity Commission has previously shown a robust approach to rejecting registration of organisations promoting racist white nationalist ideology, and rightly so. It must take all other forms of extremism and hatred, including those motivated by religion, just as seriously."
The trustees denied publishing or displaying the leaflets. Trustee Toaha Qureshi said: "Someone might have put it there and taken from there with malicious intentions."
