Charity?
21/10/10 13:54 Filed in: Mark Benevolent Fund
This is the text of a letter sent to the Grand Secretary by the Provincial Grand Secretary, with the approval of the PGM. It expresses genuine concerns held by many members of this Province. However it receives the usual dismissive response from the Grand Treasurer.
The text of the letter.
A number of members of this Province have expressed disquiet over the financial problems of GLMMM but more particularly over the financial relationship between the GLMMM and the GLMMM Fund of Benevolence.
It is of course a known fact that the charity acquired a 99-year lease to Mark Masons Hall in 1979 for £1.2M. Presumably to gain the approval of the Charity Commissioners, any sub lease, in this case to GLMMM would have to be at a commercial rate. It would appear from the accounts that the current rent paid by GLMMM of £90,000 pa has remained static at that level for some years. Does that rental reflect accurately the current property values in the area? Has an independent valuation been obtained since the rent was last reviewed?
A further question arises over the management charge made by GLMMM on the Fund of Benevolence. You are doubtless familiar with the figures but members of this Province have expressed concerns that an almost doubling of the charge on the charity to exactly £200,000 in 2009 could be seen as excessive.
The overall concern of the members making these enquiries is to ensure that a properly regulated relationship exists between GLMMM and GLMMMBoF and more importantly can be seen quite clearly to exist. The information given to members at the moment does not ensure the latter point and thus could give rise to the suspicion that the relationship between the two parties may not be properly regulated, thereby running the risk of bringing Freemasonry into disrepute.
I look forward to receiving your detailed response that I will then communicate to the brethren of the Province.
And the response
A number of members of this Province have expressed disquiet over the financial problems of GLMMM but more particularly over the financial relationship between the GLMMM and the GLMMM Fund of Benevolence.
It is of course a known fact that the charity acquired a 99-year lease to Mark Masons Hall in 1979 for £1.2M. Presumably to gain the approval of the Charity Commissioners, any sub lease, in this case to GLMMM would have to be at a commercial rate. It would appear from the accounts that the current rent paid by GLMMM of £90,000 pa has remained static at that level for some years. Does that rental reflect accurately the current property values in the area? Has an independent valuation been obtained since the rent was last reviewed?
A further question arises over the management charge made by GLMMM on the Fund of Benevolence. You are doubtless familiar with the figures but members of this Province have expressed concerns that an almost doubling of the charge on the charity to exactly £200,000 in 2009 could be seen as excessive.
The overall concern of the members making these enquiries is to ensure that a properly regulated relationship exists between GLMMM and GLMMMBoF and more importantly can be seen quite clearly to exist. The information given to members at the moment does not ensure the latter point and thus could give rise to the suspicion that the relationship between the two parties may not be properly regulated, thereby running the risk of bringing Freemasonry into disrepute.
I look forward to receiving your detailed response that I will then communicate to the brethren of the Province.
And the response