Charity Matters Oct/Nov 2015 ISSUE 63

BAGGING A CUT Those wishing to help out our struggling Treasury, along with some charities, should rush out on October 5th and buy up lots of the single use carrier bags …

TREATING DONORS BADLY There is to be a clampdown on charities that sell or swap lists of their donors to be canvassed by others, particularly if they have not had clear …

NOT POLITICAL An independent review of the RSPCA’s prosecution work has concluded that its successful 2012 test case prosecution of David Cameron’s Heythrop …

CRUEL FASHION An expose by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) of the cruelty involved in killing young crocodiles and alligators for their skins has …

FALSE INFORMATION Armed Forces charities concerned about potential loss of donations from air shows in the wake of the recent Shoreham air disaster that killed 11 …

ANOTHER CHARITY VICTORY FOR ANIMAL AID Age UK is to cease funding vivisection and joins the growing list of charities whose donated funds are not used for …

FALLING RETURNS Parachute jumps for charity have come in for some criticism in a new book about charity fundraising. “Doing Good Better: Effective Altruism and How …

BAGGING A CUT

Those wishing to help out our struggling Treasury, along with some charities, should rush out on October 5th and buy up lots of the single use carrier bags that large shops and supermarkets have to by then charge 5 pence for, rather than giving them away.

Despite the monies raised going to environmental causes HMRC have refused to waive the VAT and hope to rake in £19 million a year from the estimated 190 million bags we are expected to buy in the next year to donate. Dream on, we’d say. Continue reading

TREATING DONORS BADLY

There is to be a clampdown on charities that sell or swap lists of their donors to be canvassed by others, particularly if they have not had clear permission from their donors to sell their names on.

The move comes as concern grows that vulnerable people are being aggressively targeted in this way. One 87 year-old with dementia had his name passed on to nearly 200 organisations, some of which were scam operators who conned him out of £35,000. (Daily Mail) List sharing by charities is another way that names can get into the wrong hands. Continue reading

CRUEL FASHION

An expose by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) of the cruelty involved in killing young crocodiles and alligators for their skins has persuaded British model and designer Jane Birkin to ask design group Hermes to change the name of its crocodile-skin Birkin handbag.

The bag was launched by Hermes in 1984 and named after the Sixties singer for giving the company the original idea for its practical design in 1981 and since then has become a big hit with the rich and fashion-conscious such as Victoria Beckham, Jennifer Lopez, Kate Moss, Julia Roberts and others who have paid up to £100,000 and beyond for their ostentatious symbols of wealth, generating hundreds of millions for Hermes. Predictably the design is also one of the world’s most widely-copied, perhaps for those with more sense than money, and who don’t want to join the six-year waiting list for one made by Hermes. Continue reading

FALSE INFORMATION

Armed Forces charities concerned about potential loss of donations from air shows in the wake of the recent Shoreham air disaster that killed 11 members of the public are being given false reassurance, along with the public, about the safety record of air displays by those who make money from them.

According to the PR department of the British Air Display Association the last time members of the public were killed at an event was “63 years ago”, a reference to the 1952 Farnborough Air Show tragedy when 29 died.

In fact six members of the public died at the Biggin Hill Air Show in 1980, 35 years ago, when they were being carried on a Douglas Invader which crashed very close to a housing estate attempting a rolling climb stunt.

Fuller story in Event Organisers Update issue 132, September.

ANOTHER CHARITY VICTORY FOR ANIMAL AID

Age UK is to cease funding vivisection and joins the growing list of charities whose donated funds are not used for animal experimentation. (Ethical Consumer magazine).

Around 135 medical charities, including Marie Curie Cancer Care and Breast Cancer UK do not conduct or fund animal research, but ninety still do, despite a 2011 opinion poll conducted by Animal Aid that found that 82% of the public would not donate to charities that did.

Information about charities and their policy on funding vivisection is on the Animal Aid database at web: victimsofcharity.org

FALLING RETURNS

Parachute jumps for charity have come in for some criticism in a new book about charity fundraising. “Doing Good Better: Effective Altruism and How You Can Make a Difference” by Oxford don and expert in charity giving William MacAskill, reviewed in the Daily Express.

Less than 40% of the money raised from sponsoring a jump actually gets to the charity says MacAskill since the parachute clubs take the lion’s share. A sponsorship of £400 commonly sees the parachute club get £250 and the charity £150, making it a very wasteful way of raising money for good causes.

LETHAL COOL

A cocktail containing liquid nitrogen cost an 18 year-old her stomach in 2012, and the wine bar in Lancaster that served it a fine of £100,000 last week.

Gaby Scanlon was given the drink at her birthday celebration at Oscars Wine Bar and drank it while it was still smoking with evaporating nitrogen. This effectively caused instant freezing of internal organs and her perforated and frostbitten stomach had to be removed to save her life. Scanlon claims she asked someone in the bar if the trendy Nitro-Jagermieste cocktail was safe to drink while the nitrogen was still evaporating and was told it was. Three years on she still suffers considerable pain and finds no joy in eating. Continue reading

BAN FOR SCOTTISH CHAUFFEUR FIRM

A director of Edinburgh chauffeur firm Chauffeurline(UK) Ltd has been banned from operating passenger vehicles or acting as a transport manager for three years, for illegally running the business without a licence.

The company operated a fleet of 19 luxury vehicles, including six Jaguar XJL’s and three 16-seater Mercedes minibuses, and had contracts with a number of Scotland’s luxury hotels as well as the BBC, British Airways, P&O and Balmoral. Continue reading