Good Law Project’s complaint against the IEA dismissed by Charity Commission
26 March 2024
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IEA research referenced in The Scottish Daily Mail
26 March 2024
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The Charity Commission has rejected the Good Law Project’s demand to open a formal inquiry into the free market think tank, the Institute of Economic Affairs.
The Good Law Project asserted in a complaint two weeks ago that the IEA has failed to comply with charity law. But, in a letter to the IEA this week, the Charity Commission dismissed the complaint. “We have assessed the concerns raised and have not identified concerns that the charity is acting outside of its objects or the Commission’s published guidance,” the letter said.
This comes after Orlando Fraser KC, the chairman of the Charity Commission, wrote in The Times in defence of think tanks’ charitable status:
“I hope charity think tanks can continue to carry out the work they do unhindered by unfounded complaints made to the commission about the alleged non-charitable nature of their work — and continue to be the valuable part of our democracy they are trusted to be.”
Earlier this month, the Charity Commission also withdrew a 2018 regulatory alert issued to charitable think tanks. The IEA criticised this guidance as an unnecessary burden on the sector that would encourage vexatious complaints when it was first issued.
In response to the Charity Commission’s decision to dismiss the complaint, a spokesperson for the Institute of Economic Affairs said:
“The IEA welcomes the Charity Commission’s rapid rejection of the Good Law Project’s vexatious complaint. This publicity stunt has backfired by reconfirming the IEA is acting consistently with our status as an educational charity.
“This is a clear victory for freedom of expression in the face of those trying to silence different perspectives. We look forward to continuing to advance the public understanding of economic ideas from a free market perspective.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Contact: media@iea.org.uk / 07763 365520
The mission of the Institute of Economic Affairs is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems. The IEA is a registered educational charity and independent of all political parties.
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