[WiLT] Trustee rules 'could lead to conflicts of interest'

[WiL Admin]

Trustee rules 'could lead to conflicts of interest'

New rules allowing charities to pay their trustees for providing
professional services without first seeking permission from the
Charity Commission could cause conflicts of interest, according to one
sector expert.

Sections 36 and 37 of the 2006 Charities Act, which are due to be
implemented this month, will allow trustees to be paid for providing
services to their charities. Such arrangements were previously
possible only with the commission's consent.

Payment now becomes possible for services such as legal work,
accountancy, building and maintenance.

Judith Rich, chair of Charity Appointments and the Diabetes
Foundation, said it was a step towards the full payment of trustees.
"It will leave the door open to conflicts of interest," she said. "It
could cause a riot."

Tesse Akpeki, a governance consultant, said ideally trustees should
not be paid even for providing services. "Motivation and money need to
be kept separate," she said.

But Rodney Buse, chair of Charity Trustee Networks, said there was
merit in the new rules, provided there were safeguards to ensure
transparency.

Seb Elsworth, head of policy at Acevo, described the new rules as
helpful. "We hope the commission will extend this pragmatic approach
to cover payments for being a trustee," he said.

Rosie Chapman, executive director of policy and effectiveness at the
commission, said the new rules were not a way of allowing payment for
trusteeship through the back door.

"The safeguards around conflict of interest are clear," she said. "The
trustee in question cannot be involved in the decision-making, there
must be a written agreement and the board must be clear about the
benefit that this arrangement brings."


Fact file

Several other sections of the Charities Act are also due to come into
force in February:

- Charities will be able to take into account "current social and
economic circumstances" as well as "the spirit of the original gift"
when redrawing their charitable objects.

- Charitable companies will be permitted to make minor changes to
their memoranda and articles of association without the Charity
Commission's consent.

- Unincorporated charities with incomes of less than £10,000 will be
able to transfer all their assets to other charities or change their
purposes by making simple resolutions.

Source
http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/News/DailyBulletin/783175/Trustee-rules-could-lead-conflicts-interest/2DF4AF8483E1D4C774D233B472DF7C48/