The Charity Commission has opened a statutory inquiry into The Saint George Educational Trust over serious regulatory concerns that there is or has been misconduct and/or mismanagement in the administration of the charity.

In particular, concerns have been identified in relation to activities carried out by the charity that do not appear to further its religious purposes, including material it had posted online and political activity or campaigning. The Commission also has significant concerns that the charity has associations with an extreme right-wing organisation and how this furthers its religious purposes, something that the Commission has previously investigated.

The charity, based in Andover, Hampshire, has charitable purposes that include the advancement of the Catholic religion.

The inquiry will examine:

• the administration, governance, and management of the charity by the trustees – including, but not limited to, its relationships with external organisations and individuals, and use of the internet and social media
• the financial controls and management of the charity, and whether its funds have been properly expended in accordance with the charity’s purposes and can be accounted for
• the conduct of the trustees
• whether or not the trustees have complied with and fulfilled their duties and responsibilities as trustees under charity law

The Commission may extend the scope of the inquiry if additional regulatory issues emerge.

Immediately following the opening of the inquiry, the Commission took action to freeze a bank account holding the charity’s funds so that no one can access or move them without the Commission’s prior consent.

The Commission has also ordered the trustees to review and remove content from the charity’s website and social media pages that does not further the charity’s purposes, and directed them not to allow such material in future. At this time the charity’s website is no longer available to view.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

1. The Charity Commission is the independent, non-ministerial government department that registers and regulates charities in England and Wales. Its purpose is to ensure charity can thrive and inspire trust so that people can improve lives and strengthen society.

2. The charity has been the subject of three previous statutory inquiries, two of which opened in 1997 and 1999. The second inquiry was opened to consider the charity’s association with an extreme right-wing organisation. On 25 July 2022, the charity became part of the Commission’s Statutory Class Inquiry, having failed to submit financial information to the Commission for two or more years over the last 5 years. The charity ceased to be part of the Class Inquiry with the opening of this new inquiry, however its accounting information (for the financial years ending 31 March 2020 and 2021) remains outstanding, which will be considered as part of the new inquiry.

3. This latest inquiry was opened on 7 October 2022, under section 46 of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).

4. Section 76(3)(d) of the Act gives the Commission power to order any person who holds any property on behalf of a charity not to part with that property without the approval of the Commission.

5. Section 84 of the Act gives the Commission power to compel trustees to take specified action(s) which the Commission considers to be expedient in the interests of the charity.

6. Section 84A of the Act gives the Commission power to direct trustees not to take or continue to take a specific action(s) if the Commission considers the action(s) would constitute misconduct or mismanagement in the charity’s administration.

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• UK’s Ukraine Cyber Programme is protecting the Ukrainian Government and its critical national infrastructure from malicious cyber attacks.

• Partnership with industry is preventing Russian malign actors from accessing vital networks and providing forensic capabilities to the Ukrainian authorities.

• An initial £6.35 million package was mobilised in response to an increasing tempo of Russian cyber activity in the days following the invasion of Ukraine.

A £6.35 million support package from the UK Government is protecting Ukraine’s critical national infrastructure and vital public services from cyber attacks, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has revealed.

The UK’s Ukraine Cyber Programme was mobilised shortly after Putin’s invasion in February to protect against increased Russian cyber attacks. The programme has not been made public until now to protect its operational security.

Utilising the expertise of world-leading cyber security providers, the UK’s Ukraine Cyber Programme has to date:

1. Provided incident response support to Government of Ukraine entities, protecting them against destructive cyber attacks, including malware such as Industroyer2. This is preventing malicious actors from accessing vital information relevant to the war effort.

2. Limited attacker access to vital networks and supported Ukraine to harden their critical infrastructure against future attacks.

3. Delivered frontline cyber security hardware and software including: firewalls to prevent attacks taking hold; DDoS protection to ensure Ukrainian citizens can continue to access vital information; and forensic capabilities to enable Ukrainian analysts to fully understand system compromises.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said:

Russia’s attack on Ukraine is not limited to its horrific land invasion. It has also persistently attempted to invade Ukraine’s cyberspace, threatening critical information, services and infrastructure.

The UK’s support to Ukraine is not limited to military aid – we are drawing on Britain’s world-leading expertise to support Ukraine’s cyber defences. Together, we will ensure that the Kremlin is defeated in every sphere: on land, in the air and in cyber space.

Lindy Cameron, CEO of the National Cyber Security Centre, said:

The NCSC is proud to have played a part in supporting Ukraine’s cyber defenders. They have mounted an impressive defence against Russian aggression in cyberspace, just as they have done on the physical battlefield.

The threat remains real and the UK’s support package is undoubtedly bolstering Ukraine’s defences further.

Russian actors have a long history of hostile and destabilising activity against Ukraine, including:

• Shutting off part of Ukraine’s electricity grid in December 2015, leaving 230,000 people without power for up to 6 hours.
• Destructive cyber attacks in 2017 targeting Ukraine’s finance and energy sectors and government services, leading to knock-on effects on other European partners.
• Kyiv metro and Odessa airport disrupted by ransomware that encrypted hard drives.
• Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks on 15-16 February 2022, which the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) judge were the work of Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency.
• A series of cyber attacks since the invasion, including against commercial operators such as Viasat in March which had a serious impact on access to internet and other services across both Ukraine and other parts of Europe.

The tempo of Russian cyber attacks against Ukraine increased significantly following its illegal invasion in February 2022, seeking to undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty and strategic advantage in the war.

The UK’s support is strengthening Ukraine’s cyber defences and improving collective long-term cyber resilience.

• Wrightbus has already secured export contracts to Australia and Germany, with its sights set on expansion in Italy, France, Spain and Southeast Asia
• This growth will boost jobs in Northern Ireland as Wrightbus looks to hire 300 new staff in the next year, after already expanding headcount by over 40% in the last 12 months

UK Export Finance (UKEF) is providing a Northern Ireland-based bus manufacturer with an 80 percent guarantee on its major financing deal from Barclays. The government guarantee is on an £18 million Green Trade Loan and £8 million Green Bank Guarantee, allowing Wrightbus to export its cutting-edge zero emission buses to new export markets.

Based in Ballymena, Wrightbus introduced the world’s first hydrogen-powered double deck bus in 2020, and also produces electric-powered single and double-deck buses for export globally. The business is aiming to manufacture 3,000 zero-emissions buses by 2024, comprising 10 percent of the UK’s total fleet.

The production of zero-emission vehicles is a capital-intensive process and Wrightbus needed to bridge the gap from the warehouse to road-ready. With orders of over 200 buses from customers, such as the National Transport Authority in the Republic of Ireland, UKEF and Barclays support has enabled Wrightbus to scale up production to meet this demand.

Wrightbus is expanding its exporting operations globally, with sights set on expanding into Italy, France, Spain and South-East Asia. The business hopes to grow exports to over 40% of turnover as demand increases globally. It will also look to make 300 further hires to support its growth ambitions, bolstering local jobs in the region.

Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch MP said:

It’s fantastic to see Great British companies like Wrightbus take full advantage of the opportunities exporting opens up. By expanding into new markets, building on wins secured from our UK-Australia trade deal, and this new UKEF-backed support, they are driving growth and creating high-skilled green jobs in Northern Ireland.

I am proud the Government is supporting British firms to go further, exporting their cutting-edge clean technology to new markets, cutting emissions and boosting jobs across the United Kingdom.

Ben Werth, Wrightbus Chief Commercial Officer, said:

At Wrightbus, we are entering the next stage of our ambitious growth plan, significantly growing our export volume from our UK base and becoming one of the leading battery electric and hydrogen bus manufacturers in Europe. UKEF’s support will strongly help us on our future global growth path.

Richard Lowe, Head of UK Large Corporate at Barclays Corporate Banking, added:

WrightBus continues to drive the net-zero agenda in the public transport sector and we are pleased to play a part in their significant ambitions to export this expertise. Barclays are committed to supporting businesses with a strong environmental focus and are pleased to provide financing solutions to deliver the rapid growth of this NI headquartered manufacturer.