Calls For More Support For Bolton's Charities & Community Groups

Plans to cut red tape, promote charitable giving and get more people involved

Deborah Dunleavy, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate, welcomed this week, important new proposals from Conservative leader, David Cameron, to help boost the work of charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups across Bolton. A series of practical policies seek to strengthen the voluntary sector, cut unnecessary red tape and get more people involved in local charities and local community groups.

The Conservative policy proposals include:

·         Simplifying the Gift Aid system to reduce the bureaucratic burden on charities and promote more charitable giving

·         Replacing the Big Lottery Fund (BLF) and with a Voluntary Action Lottery Fund; the BLF has attracted criticism for giving grants to controversial causes and spending money on government services rather than funding voluntary good causes.

·         Creating a network of Social Enterprise Zones to boost social investment in deprived communities.

·         Cutting unnecessary red tape and form-filling.

·         Establishing a one-stop funding portal for significant government grants, to help voluntary groups through the confusing ‘jungle’ of different state grants.

·         Enabling the voluntary sector to compete on an equal footing with the private sector to provide services.

·         Promoting co-operatives, to allow local communities to run, and own, community assets and set up new government-funded schools.

Miss Dunleavy said:

“I welcome these new proposals to help boost local charities and community groups across Bolton, by cutting red tape, encouraging more charitable giving and helping social enterprise to provide local services.

“The social challenges we face today are every bit as serious as the economic challenges Britain faced in 1979. The big dividing line in British politics today is about the role of the state. Gordon Brown believes in top-down state control; Conservatives believe in bottom-up social responsibility.”

“This sort of help would enable organisations like Bolton Lads & Girls Club to plan ahead. We have to trust voluntary organisations such as this with enough funding to be able to plan ahead. They are the experts!”

“David has been to Club, and seen first hand the contribution they make to the community, and understands how important the voluntary sector is to taking our community forward”