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Charities (Disclosure of Revenue and Customs Information to the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland) Regulations 2010

My Lords, I thank both noble Lords for their comments, which I welcome. I endorse the view expressed by the noble Lord, Lord Smith of Clifton, who was impressed by what he saw in Northern Ireland as far as the charitable sector is concerned. I also endorse the views expressed by the noble Lord, Lord Hunt of Wirral, that we do not want the charitable sector to be overburdened by regulatory requirements and that we live in a new, modern and transparent age where people want to know where their donations are going, what will happen to them and whether charities are regulated properly. It is important that that is the case. A number of questions were put to me. The noble Lord, Lord Hunt, asked about the provisions for Northern Ireland’s information gateway and whether they are equivalent to those in Scotland, England and Wales. I hope I can reassure him that the gateway between Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs and the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland must mirror that which exists between Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs and the Charity Commission for England and Wales. I will write to the noble Lord on Scotland as I do not have that detail. The regulations in front of us ensure that the interplay between Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs and the charitable sector in all parts of the UK is the same. That is the case as far as England and Wales is concerned, and I will write to him on Scotland.