The parliamentary secretary responsible for the voluntary sector Clifton Grima will be addressing concerns raised by NGOs regarding new regulations governing fundraising activities by voluntary organisations. 

A statement by his secretariat said that Grima had taken note of the concerns raised and would be addressing them. 

Civil Society group Repubblika was the first to sound the alarm over the new rules, which introduce a raft of new requirements for voluntary organisations to collect funds, and which the group said threatened people’s right to associate with any group that they liked. 

Since then, 79 voluntary organisations and 90 band clubs have all come out against the new rules, which were introduced in September 2020 with the stated aim of increasing transparency and reducing the risk of such organisations being used as vehicles for financial crime. 

“The legal notice was drafted with the clear intention of increasing transparency. At the same time, however, the parliamentary secretary understands the concerns raised by voluntary organisations and will be addressing them,” read the statement. 

It added that Grima was informed that the Council for the Voluntary Sector had “consulted with hundreds of voluntary organisations registered with the commission regarding the law that regulates the sector”. 

The next step, according to the statement, was for the council, after undertaking its own internal processes, to now come forward with its position on this legal notice.

“The parliamentary secretary reiterates that he looks forward to meeting with the Council for the Voluntary Sector, so that they can work together for the good of the sector,” read the statement, adding that the council had in recent years been entrusted with administering significant government investment in the sector. 

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