Scotland’s new charity bill becomes an act

Since our previous article, the Scottish Parliament have voted in favour of passing the Charities (Regulation and Administration) (Scotland) Bill and it is was given royal assent on 9 August 2023.

To further strengthen and enhance existing Scottish charity law, there have been some amendments to the original Bill. These include: –

• The names of charity trustees will be published on the OSCR website. Contact details for trustees will be maintained on an internal database.
• The accounts for all charities will be published on the OSCR website and will not be redacted.
• OSCR will be given the power to force trustees to take specific action and be given increased inquiry powers.
• Criteria for disqualification of trustees will be increased and extend to those in a senior management position.
• OSCR will be given the power to remove charities who do not submit their accounts and do not engage with OSCR when contacted.

If you have any questions on the above changes being introduced, you can contact a member of our EQ Charities team at charities@eqaccountants.co.uk, or call one of our offices.