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Charities Bill

I understand the hon. Gentleman’s role in speaking eloquently for those charities, but if we make an exception for them, many others will say that we should make an exception for them, too. However, I shall consider the points that he raised. The second area in which the Bill makes progress is on charity fundraising. Several hon. Members raised that issue, and we see the difficulty in striking the right balance between regulation that is clear and commands public confidence and the avoidance of excessive bureaucracy. The hon. Member for Isle of Wight (Mr. Turner), who speaks for the Conservative party, was concerned that tin-rattling, as he put it, would still be allowed. The hon. Member for Cheltenham (Martin Horwood) defended the position of charity fundraisers, and indeed objected to the term chugging, which my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office used. My hon. Friend the Member for Brighton, Pavilion (David Lepper) who is not in his place—[Interruption.] He is but in a different place. He talked eloquently of concerns about the charity fundraising that takes place in Brighton. I shall set out for the House how the legislation will work. The current legislation represents a bad combination of bureaucracy and inconsistency. For example, before granting a licence, local authorities are asked to judge whether a charity’s proposals for collections will yield enough in contributions compared with costs. That should be a matter not for local authorities but for charities. Everyone in the House knows that current legislation is implemented inconsistently and does not even apply to new types of fundraising. The Bill contains important steps forward in that area, and I shall briefly clarify the new regime. Collections in buildings such as churches, village halls, Royal British Legions and shops will not require a licence. Door-to-door collections will require a public collections certificate to prove the authenticity of the collector, and I can reassure my hon. Friend the Member for High Peak (Tom Levitt) that ID cards will continue to be part of that regime. Finally, street collecting will require a public collections certificate and a licence in advance from the local authority for collection on specific occasions. In answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brighton, Pavilion, clause 60 sets out the terms on which local authorities will be able to regulate fundraising. There are a number of ways in which they will be able to do that. The key aspect is that they must make a judgment about whether a collection"““would cause inconvenience to members of the public by reason of—""(a) the day or the week or date on or in which,""(b) the time at which,""(c) the frequency with which””" it takes place, and so on. I hope that that is of some reassurance to my hon. Friend.