Devil in the detail

Your recent article about the Charity Commission's consultation on making trustee names available via our Web site (see [2001] Gazette, 28 June, 8) showed that there may be needless concern about privacy and confidentiality.The public register of charities has long given the names and contact details of the nominated correspondent for each charity.

Names of trustees are already in the public domain - we are simply looking at ways of making this already-available information more accessible.

We are not stating that the addresses of all trustees should be made available via the Web, but asking for views on the degree of detail which might be given.

Trustees of some types of charities, for example women's refuges, can currently be exempted from giving individual contact details - and this option will remain.To contribute to this debate, look at the consultation document via our Web site at:www.charity-commission.gov.ukRosie Chapman, director of policy, Charity Commission