Politics with a capital P

Intelligent Giving have slated Barnado's boss Martin Narey for his forthright appeal to prevent a seven year old Malawi boy being deported with his parents - all three of them have HIV and have no hope of treatment back in Malawi.

Adam Rothwell's stance is that this is political campaigning and therefore the 'omnipresent Martin Narey' as he is described and the charity he heads should not therefore be involved.

Adam goes on to say -

"Charities are barred from being too 'political'. But increasingly it seems that what some charities - and the Charity Commission - see as 'political' bears little resemblance to what most ordinary people would think."

I don't think so.

Of course as we often hear politics is a grey area but as one of those ordinary people I feel Barnado's has every right to campaign on behalf of vulnerable children in the UK. If that means questioning a deportation order placed on a young seven year old boy with HIV then I'm comfortable that they are keeping within their charitable boundaries.

If not Barnados then who will?

Posted by Gareth Jenkins at 8:07 AM