A recent investigation carried out by the Good Law Project has revealed that nearly £28 million in charitable donations, many of which have links to individuals with close ties to the conservative party have been funneled into right-wing think tanks. The funds, distributed through 48 trusts and foundations have highlighted their concerns about the use of charitable structures to sponsor political causes.
Thirty-one of these trusts were found to be associated with individuals who have collectively donated £35 million to the conservatives since 2001. Worthy of note is that 15 of these are family-run trusts or foundations with Tory peers on their boards and that these organizations alone have accounted for nearly half of the total donations that were uncovered in the report.
Key beneficiaries and funding flows
Among the main recipients of the funding is the Institute of Economics Affairs, the climate-skeptic Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF), and the Taxpayers’ Alliance, a low-tax lobbying group.
On the other hand, the largest contributors to the £28 million funds include:
- Nigel Vinson Charitable Trust – £7.85 million
- Institute of Policy Research – £7.08 million
- Politics and Economics Research Trust – £2.81 million
- Charles Wolfson Charitable Trust – £2.46 million
Lord Nigel Vinson, a former Conservative peer has been found to be a major donor to the GWPF, while the Institute for Policy Research which was established by the Thatcherite Centre for Policy Studies was recorded to have channeled over £7 million to the other right-learning groups.
The Policies and Economic Research Trusts, initially founded as the Taxpayers Alliance Research Trust, has also come under heavy scrutiny for allocating 97% of its grant to pro-Brexit groups in 2015. Meanwhile, the Charles Wolfson Charitable Trust is also supporting think tanks such as Civitas and the Adam Smith Research Trust.
Charity 101: The world’s 10 oldest charity organizations: Nine centuries of compassion and service
Tax relief and anonymity
The reports from the Good Law Project findings suggest that some think tanks set up charity entities with the intention of taking advantage of anonymity and tax reliefs to accept donations for their cause. They further revealed that for every £100 donated, charities can secure £182 through tax benefits.
Investigative journalist Peter Geoghegan criticized the lack of transparency among these organizations, saying,
“Tufton Street’s so-called think tanks refuse to answer a simple question: ‘Who funds you?” He further noted, “Charities, which are supposed to support the public good have effectively been acting as fronts to funnel money into Tufton Street bank accounts”
The reports also raise concerns and questions about whether these charitable donations are in fact aligning with the intended purpose of advancing the good of the public or are they primarily there just to obscure financial flows into political advocacy.