Money 'reasonably expected' to reach Captain Tom's charity never did, commissioner tells LBC

21 November 2024, 00:12 | Updated: 21 November 2024, 01:08

The daughter of Captain Tom and her husband put “private interests” above the veteran’s charity, Paul Latham, Director of Policy at the Charity Commission told LBC.

Hannah Ingram-Moore and her husband Colin committed repeated acts of misconduct in their management of the Captain Tom Foundation, the Charity Commission ruled.

Speaking to LBC’s Tom Swarbrick, Mr Latham said today’s report found “a pattern of behaviour where the private interests of the family and the interests of the charity were not being kept properly.”

He continued: “Separate conflicts of interest were not being properly managed and Hannah and Colin Ingram Moore, the two family members, were potentially benefiting personally from the charity.

“This is a fundamental point about charity, is that you have to keep your private interests separate from the public benefits of the charity and unfortunately, we found that there were repeated instances where that wasn't the case.”

He pointed to an £18,000 appearance fee Ms Ingram-Moore accepted for an event.

“So a really clear example would be an awards ceremony where Hannah Ingram Moore accepted and presented an award in the name of Captain Tom.

“It was accepted and very much in the name of the charity. However, the £18,000 appearance fee was accepted by Hannah Ingram more personally.

“We think there would have been a reasonable expectation that some or all of that money would have flowed to the charity. But it didn't.”

Mr Latham was clear to point out that no evidence of criminal activity was discovered in the report.

He told LBC: “No, we have found no evidence of a crime. What we have found is that there was misconduct and or mismanagement in how the charity was run.

“We have disqualified both Hannah and Colin Ingram Moore as trustees of the charity for a number of years. We have also indicated to the Ingram Moores that they have an opportunity to help to put this right and make a donation to the charity. They have not done so.”

Mr Latham ended the interview with a plea to Brits not to lose faith in the charity system.

He said: “What I would really like to stress to your listeners is that they should continue to have faith and trust in charities.

“There are 170,000 charities on the Charity Commission's register. The vast majority of them are doing great work up and down the country on a whole range of causes. And you can continue to put your trust and your faith in charities. And that's partly because you can also know that we are here as a regulator, as a fallback

“If something does go wrong, we will intervene and will take strong action. And we have taken strong action here, disqualifying the Ingram Moores.”

Failings found in the 30-page report include:

• The couple misled the public about a payment of nearly £1.5m from Captain Tom's books, none of which went to the foundation
• She claimed incorrectly that £18,000 she was given for charity appearances was in a personal capacity, rather than for the foundation
• She and her husband used the foundation in a planning application for a spa and pool annex on the grounds of their house
• Ms Ingram-Moore made 'disingenuous' statements about her salary demands as CEO of the charity
• There was also confusion over handling of intellectual property rights, which the commission said were owned by the family but offered to the foundation to use without the right agreements in place, leading to possible financial losses to the charity

The commission set up the inquiry in 2021, and it became a statutory inquiry in 2022 as concerns grew about Mr and Ms Ingram-Moore's handling of the charity.

Ms Ingram-Moore was "disingenuous" in claiming that she had not been offered a six-figure sum to run the foundation, the inquiry found.

While this was technically correct, she had previously effectively asked for £150,000 and been rejected. She was later given a salary of £85,000 per year pro rata for nine months.

For Captain Tom's books, Club Nook, a company of which the Ingram-Moores are directors, were given an advance of nearly £1.5 million.

The commission said the public "would understandably feel misled" to learn that sales of his autobiography, Tomorrow Will Be A Good Day, did not benefit the charity.

Captain Sir Tom Moore's family said they were treated "unfairly and unjustly" in the report into their association with the charity set up in his name.

The Ingram-Moore family said the Charity Commission's two-year inquiry has taken a "serious toll" on the family's health, "unfairly tarnishing" their name.

They described the process as "unjust and excessive", adding that the charities watchdog had a "predetermined agenda".