How good to be back home. My very own bed. A good cup of tea ( tea should be made properly,and that means tea leaves in a pot;something sadly lacking in Manchester ). And in time for the Archers. Bliss.
But I enjoyed doing a slot on the PM Programme about NPC's " moral index". (Read Martin Brookes' speech on this here. I don't think it is the job of anyone in the sector to determine what is moral giving , or what is not. And my dear Great Aunt Marjorie, just turned 98 , has now become famous as I suggested if I told her she should not give to animal charities because children are a more worthy cause or more moral I would get a clip round the ear for being impertinent. Rightly so. Martin Brookes emails me after to suggest a " draw" and I readily agree. Martin is trying to argue that people should think more about their givinig. And of course NPC are doing incredible work in encouraging more transparency in charities and more attention to demonstrating outcomes.
And I owe him a favourite as he very kindly references my Blog! Thankyou Martin. But I'm still not signing up to a moral index. Giving is a personal choice and it is not for us to say it is not moral to give to animals. Or to a catholic charity that has a view on abortion or adoption by same sex couples. Or that giving to a human rights organization in Burma is less worthy than charities working with child abuse in the UK. We each have our moral compass. Let's us not loose that vital link between the donor and the cause.
And on practical level who would construct the moral index or suggest which causes are more worthy than others? One of our greatest attributes in our charity sector is that people might join together to challenge the established morality of the times. Challenge predujice. We don't want a committee of the Great and Good grading us all,or adopting an " approved for giving" label surely?
But the debate is a good one if it reminds us of the need to be up front with our donors. To be transparent. To demonstrate outcomes. Just let's not suggest donkey sanctuary giving is not worthy.
And now the Hound needs feeding. How pleased she was to see me. Don't knock animal charities Martin. She will not approve.
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