The Small Charitable Donations and Childcare Payments Bill 2016-17 has now finished its passage through the House of Commons, with its Report Stage and Third Reading on 15 November 2016. While a number of amendments and new clauses were tabled, all of them were either withdrawn or voted down. The full transcript of the debate is available online.

In particular, the Government made it clear that it would not back a new clause, which would have specifically excluded certain charities – scouting, guiding and cadet groups in the first instance – from being caught under the connected charities rule. This would have allowed all such groups to claim under GASDS, if eligible, as individual charities. The argument made by the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Jane Ellison, was that under the newly relaxed community buildings regulations – already set out in the Bill – scout huts and other similar organisations would already be eligible for the scheme.

While CTG has welcomed the relaxation of the community buildings rules as set out in the new Bill, it has also called for clearer guidance on their precise application to be made available as soon as possible, in order for charities not to miss out and to increase take-up of the scheme to the desired level.

The Bill has now moved to the House of Lords, where it received its First Reading on 16 November and where Second Reading will take place on 12 December. Given that this is a Money Bill, Committee and Report Stages and Third Reading will all be simple formalities; they will all take place on the same day.