A group of Conservative MPs have called for greater investment in the Charity Commission to strengthen transparency and governance in the voluntary sector amid the government's 'levelling up' agenda.

The call has come in a report around ‘levelling up’ issues, by ten Tory MPs and is being presented to the Conservative Party Conference this week by Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove.

Called Trusting the People it argues the case for “community powered conservatism” amid ‘levelling up’, that includes “radical forms of governance and transparency” to ensure public funds “are not being siphoned away by organisations but go into real change”.

This includes “creating real-time regulation and oversight, so that places where there are abuses of power can be investigated quickly, and to prevent new monopolies emerging rather than waiting years for action to be taken”.

It adds: “This would mean investing in organisations such as the Charity Commission and CIC Regulator”, which regulates community interest companies.

Tory MPs to sign the report, which has been published by think tank the New Social Covenant Unit, are: Siobhan Baillie, Miriam Cates, Nick Fletcher, Jo Gideon, Jonathan Gullis, Paul Howell, Jerome Mayhew, Robin Millar, Kieran Mullan and Jane Stevenson.

Also involved in compiling the report is Conservative MP Danny Kruger, who carried out a government commissioned civil society review last year and was handed a government post in the Department for Levelling UP, Housing and Communities, in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s reshuffle last month.

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