Govt pledges charity crackdown

The row over charity marketing has at last reched the Houses of Parliament after demands for a so-called “Olive’s Law” has received cross-party support.
The move follows a torrid fortnight for charity marketers, with more tales of aggressive marketing tactics emerging almost by the hour.
Ministers are now being urged to place restrictions on fundraisers in a new Charities Bill. Some MPs are even calling on the sharing of donor data between charities to be outlawed.
Chris Grayling, the Leader of the House of Commons, said: “This government will be bringing forward measures to address issues within the charitable sector – that will provide an opportunity to debate and discuss these issues.”
Obviously playing to the gallery, the rather ill-informed Conservative MP Andrew Percy said: “We should be addressing this. Younger people are used to throwing away junk mail, but for older people it’s more personal to receive something by post.”
In fact, Royal Mail MarketReach research shows people of all ages like receiving direct mail and the majority keep hold of it for weeks – sticking it on the fridge or on a noticeboard – before acting on its contents.
However, as always there are many unscrupulous organisations – many of them charities – which continue to bombard vulnerable people becuase they know they are a soft target and are unaware of how to complain.
The Fundraising Standards Board has already pledged to investigate the issue following the apparent suicide of Olive Cooke, whom relatives claim had been “overwhelmed” with direct mail appeals.

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