A charitable think tank rebranded a trading subsidiary, changed its publication process and rebalanced its website content during a Charity Commission compliance case. 

The regulator said it had concluded its case into the Global Warming Policy Foundation after the charity was accused of breaking lobbying and finance rules.

The regulator started investigating the charity in May 2022 after complaints were raised about its output and funding.

A cross party group of MPs represented by the Good Law Project said the think tank could be guilty of “mismanagement or breaches of duty”.

The Good Law Project said its research had uncovered concerns including “several hundred thousands pounds’ worth of spending on one-sided research and a financial relationship between GWPF and its non-charitable subsidiary Net Zero Watch which appears to breach key protections of charity law”.

In its case report, the regulator said it examined how the charity ensured its output met “appropriately rigorous standards of objective analysis and factual research to support the conclusions being presented”, which was required for educational research in charity law.  

“During the commission’s engagement, the trustees proposed, trialled and implemented a new system that enables a level of external review in preprint, allowing for comments, corrections and proposed amendments ahead of publication from experts and other interested parties,” the regulator said.

Trustees made “important changes” to the think tank’s website content, which now displays “links to a far wider range of sources of information on climate change including those that draw conclusions different to those presented by the charity”, the regulator said.

The Charity Commission said this ensured greater balance to the content of the think tank’s website.

The think tank wholly owns its trading subsidiary, Net Zero Watch, which changed its working name from Global Warming Policy Forum in October 2021 to distinguish its non-charitable campaigns from the charity’s activities.

Its name was formally changed last May.

The regulator said it found no evidence that the think tank was financially supporting Net Zero Watch and that the trading subsidiary had consistently operated at a loss.

“The commission considers the trustees’ plan to end its ownership of the subsidiary to be an appropriate further step,” the regulator said.

Concerns were also raised about donations from a separate US sister organisation, American Friends of Global Warming Policy Foundation, and whether the charity had taken reasonable steps to ensure it received the largest possible share.

The think tank and the US organisation had a director in common.

The regulator said: “While the commission has no jurisdiction over a USA-based organisation, it concluded that there were appropriate procedures in place for conflicts of interests between the organisations to be managed and so the person holding roles at both organisations had no involvement in funding decisions.”

The regulator said it received and accepted “strong assurances” from the think tank’s trustees that it did not accept donations from the energy industry or anyone with a significant interest in an energy company.

“The charity demonstrated that its protocol for the acceptance of gifts prevents it from accepting donations from such sources,” the regulator said.

“The regulator has seen no evidence to contradict this.

“The charity offered assurances that its sister organisation – American Friends of Global Warming Policy Foundation – operates the same policy.”

Jerome Booth, chair of the Global Warming Policy Foundation, said: “There are those who employ moral reasoning with little respect for opposing views.

“Sometimes they employ heavy-handed means to shut down debate and persecute and attack anyone with whom they disagree.

“When they happen to be wrong this can seriously hamper good decisions and policymaking.

“This educational charity was set up to help generate an informed and rational debate on energy and climate policies for the greater public good.

“We welcome the commission’s findings and will continue to pursue our charitable objectives.”

Jo Maugham, executive director at the Good Law Project, said: "Reading between the lines it is clear that the Global Warming Policy Foundation committed multiple breaches of charity law. 

“What is startling is the Charity Commission's unfathomable desire to spare GWPF explicit criticism or impose regulatory sanction. 

“There are proper questions to be asked about the notional regulator's motivations.”