Interpal, a registered charity based in London which has aims around aiding Palestinians, is under attack again.

It has been cleared by two investigations by the Charity Commission on whether it provided money to terrorist organisations, and the Board of Deputies of British Jews has recently withdrawn website claims linking Interpal to terrorism, under threat of libel action. But it a designation preventing US citizens having anything to do with it still stands, and now its banker, NatWest is being sued in the States in that it “knowingly collected, provided, and transmitted money and financial services to Hamas” and cites several atrocities which the group has claimed responsibility for.

No doubt more controversy is being stirred by George Galloway nominating Interpal for his Big Brother money.

See various newspaper reports etc for more e.g. Telegraph: Telegraph | Money | Terror victims target NatWest over Galloway’s chosen charity.

The TUC seems to be putting some effort into trade unions linking up with community activists and the third sector in general, in campaigning and ‘organising’ workers (and others?). Reminds me, for some reason, of some of the links when I was involved in community campaigns in Waterloo and North Southwark 20 plus years ago.

A TUC conference ‘Organising Unions, Organising Communities’ last November aimed to explore the value and practice of linking workplace organising to wider community-based initiatives, existing union work with community and third sector organisations, union efforts to engage under-represented groups and how unions can build sustainable working relationships with social movement partners.
See: Trades Union Congress - Organising Union, Organising communities Conference Report

And upcoming:
On March 31st-April 1st the TUC and the Methodist Church will jointly host a ‘Creating Community Alliances’ residential training session, which will be open to union officers, organisers, industrial/workplace chaplains and church/community activists from across the Christian faith communities. Trades Union Congress - Community Organising - new pilot training project

Northern Ireland’s umbrella body NICVA asks the question
“What would make it a great Christmas for the sector?”.

While Third Sector magazine asks
Was 2005 a good year for the voluntary sector?

The audience at Third Sector magazine’s “Britain’s Most Admired Charities” awards this week, including many from large well-established charities, got a bit more then they were expecting.

From Community Newswire, 4/11/05:

Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith has launched a blistering attack on the nation’s big charities, claiming a “cosy relationship” has developed between the giants of the voluntary sector and the Whitehall departments who supply them with grants and contracts.

Speaking at a charity awards event in London last night the MP for Chingford and Woodford Green said Britain’s big charities had increasingly come to mirror the civil service in their “risk-averse, bureaucratic, ideologically monochrome and politically correct” mindsets.

More at
Community Newswire