U.K. Charities Avoid Advocacy, Fearing Loss of Government Support, Says Report

A new study found that British charities are increasingly wary of taking on an advocacy role on social issues for fear of further eroding government financial support, The Guardian writes.

In a report issued Monday, a commission established to monitor the independence of the U.K. nonprofit sector said that with the government implementing deep spending cuts, organizations that rely on public money “are fearful of challenging government or local authorities, in case this could lead to reprisals.”

Such concerns were particularly acute among smaller groups that work with marginalized populations such as people who are homeless or mentally ill, according to the panel, which includes several charity leaders. The group met with or got written responses from 85 charities and individuals.

British authorities are supposed to follow a compact developed in the mid-1990s that guarantees nonprofit service groups the right to advocate for their clients. A national audit due out this week is expected to find that some local governments are not complying with the agreement, The Guardian says.

The U.K. government is requiring charity partners on its main welfare-to-work program to avoid attracting “adverse publicity” and refrain from speaking to the press about their efforts without government approval, reports Third Sector.

The Department for Work and Pensions said the contract provisions represented “a sensible approach for providers and the department when dealing with a wide and varied media” and that it has not punished charities that publicly criticized the program.