Britain Weighs Plan to Purge Charities of ‘Extremist’ Trustees

A British government proposal would authorize charity regulators to purge people considered to be “extremists” from nonprofit boards, The Telegraph reports.

A leaked draft of the government’s counter-extremism strategy defines extremism as “vocal or active opposition to fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and the mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs.” Under pending legislation such activities would be grounds for the British Charity Commission to dismiss a trustee.

The Telegraph writes that the plan could have a significant impact on mosques and Muslim private schools as well as aid charities that have been accused of supporting Hamas, Hezbollah, and jihadist groups. Organizations with ties to the far-right British National Party could also be affected. A spokesman for Acevo, an association of British charity leaders, said the group is “concerned at how widely these measures could be interpreted.”