Blog: The Great British Charity Swindle

"The British government has recently been investigating the public benefit provided by charities offering complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). They have stated that to remain qualified for charitable status, an organisation must provide evidence that the therapy being offered is capable of delivering the claimed benefits. In the case of Gerson Support Group (GSG), the organisation’s own trustees acknowledged that the evidence around their therapy, and its claims to treat cancer, would now not meet the government’s low bar criteria for registration as a charity. Essentially, the now former charity has publicly stated that they did not operate to benefit the public and have been scamming cancer sufferers with the help of the Charity Commision for decades. The now defunct organisation still in some capacity continues to promote Gerson Therapy to the British public via other questionable charities, after donating a sizable chunk of their assets after their demise. The Charity Commision has failed in its duty to protect the British public from snake-oil-salesmen and has been reluctant in investigating fraudulent organisations it awarded charitable statues to. Although the Gerson Support Group no longer exists, its downfall was not due to the Charity Commision actively investigating pseudo-medical organizations it unintentionally promotes, and somewhat sustains via tax breaks. Its demise was down to a small number of people who over years have challenged the Commission’s decisions and their clandestineness."

https://mylespower.co.uk/2022/04/25/the-great-british-charity-swindle/

@Caroline Struthers shared on Twitter

 

I don't know enough about this area, but running a charity (The Optimum Health Clinic Foundation) alongside a LTD company (The Optimum Health Clinic) seems suspicious. From the accounts, it seems that the charity's income is mostly from the LTD, and that this money is used on overheads such as rent, power, and insurance for the clinic.

https://register-of-charities.chari...lsPortlet_priv_r_p_organisationNumber=4043436

 

I am going to contact the Charity Commission, hopefully today. They have a standard form for raising issues, and the precedent of Les Rose's success with Gerson should help keep it brief and to the point. Les started by contacting the trustees. I hope the Charity Commission don't fob me off and tell me to do that in the first instance. But they probably will...