Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what information her Department holds on the number of times the guidance set out in the Fundraising Regulator’s Code of Fundraising Practice on (a) fee transparency on charging commission on Gift Aid and (b) giving equal prominence to a zero fee or tip option has been breached in each of the last three years.

Fundraising platforms are commercial organisations that provide an important service to charities and donors. Many charities ask online fundraising platforms to claim Gift Aid on donations made on their platform for the charity, and pay a fee for this service to be provided because it is cost effective and efficient to do so. No estimate has been made at this time on the potential impact of banning the charging commission on Gift Aid on revenues to charities.

Most platforms are registered with the Fundraising Regulator, which is the independent, non-statutory regulator of charitable fundraising in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Fundraising Regulator’s new Code of Fundraising Practice, which will come into force on 1 November 2025, includes requirements for fundraising platforms to include information for donors about how fees, including any voluntary tips, are calculated. The Fundraising Regulator will engage with fundraising platforms to ensure they are clear on the new transparency requirements for fees and tipping sliders before the new Code comes into effect.

DCMS does not hold information centrally about breaches of the Code of Fundraising Practice. The below information was provided by the Fundraising Regulator.

The Fundraising Regulator issued guidance for fundraising platforms on 17 February 2023.To date since the guidance was published, the Regulator has closed a total of 20 cases where there were complaints about a "tip" being taken by a platform. None involved a breach of the Code because information about fees, including the tip, was provided even if it could have been clearer or made easier for donors to choose not to tip. In the same period, there were seven complaints relating to Gift Aid but none were about commissions, fees or tips on fundraising platforms so there was no breach of the Code.

DCMS will continue working with the Fundraising Regulator, charities, and online giving platforms to support best practice across all forms of charitable fundraising.