Aileen Campbell

The consultation suggested an external register of charity trustees; publishing annual reports and accounts in full for all charities on the Scottish Charity Register; removal of charities from the Scottish Charity Register that are persistently failing to submit annual reports and accounts and may no longer exist and that all charities in the Scottish Charity Register have and retain a connection in Scotland.

More than 300 individuals, charities and other organisations responded with their views on proposals to improve the availability of information about a charity’s activities and operations.

The consultation also gained support for stronger enforcement powers, including the process to automatically disqualify trustees.

The changes are being suggested to improve trust and confidence in the sector and would update current Scottish charity law, which came into force in 2005.

Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell said: “Charities play a vital role in our society and we need to do all we can to maintain and support public trust and transparency in the third sector.

“We are grateful to everyone who took the time to respond to this consultation. The high level of engagement indicated wide and broad support for change.

“We will fully consider all the points raised, including engaging with those who called for wider changes to the regulations. Collaborative work with the third sector and other key stakeholders will continue as we develop and refine the proposals.”

Stephen Phillips, convener of the Law Society’s Charity Law Committee said earlier this year: “We welcome the Scottish government’s commitment to reviewing the legislation, but we strongly believe that there are many other areas within the legislation – over and above the specific points highlighted in the consultation document – that should be considered as part of this review. After 15 years, it would be a badly missed opportunity not to do so.”

He added: “We also believe that reform of trustee remuneration, and specific obligations regarding the reporting of notifiable events (where there has been a serious incident affecting a charity), would clarify the duties on charity trustees and promote confidence in the sector as a whole.”