PROPOSAL SPEECH BY EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN
Your Grace, Members of Synod, in presenting and proposing
the annual report of the Representative Body, I am conscious of the fact that
we are living in an ever changing world, changing and developing at a rate
greater than anything ever experienced by previous generations; it is a world
full of challenges and, unfortunately, disappointments. When we met in Belfast last year, no one
could have foreseen the chaos and problems into which the country has been
plunged this year with the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. Our farmers and
those involved in the tourist industry have our full sympathy and prayers .We
can only hope that we have turned the corner in the fight to control the
outbreak of the disease and that life for them returns to normal as quickly as
possible.
However, it is not my job to comment on such issues but
to present to Synod a report on the financial health of the Representative Body
and, by extension, the Church of Ireland.
The year covered by this report contained no such disasters and I am
happy to say that the balance sheet assets of the RB showed a modest upturn of
£18m, from £385m to £403m. This was
achieved in spite of the economic downturn through rising oil prices, the
well-publicised global problems of the hi-tech communications industry and the
general lowering of equity returns in the major financial markets. Wage inflation, on which I hinted last year,
particularly in the Republic, is causing concern which together with the
reduced income returns from investments inevitably means that any new
initiative or request for financial assistance from the RB must be scrutinised
in great detail. Again, in order to
meet the normal allocations, it was necessary to draw on reserves and again,
the major proportion of the allocations goes towards the support of the
stipendiary ministry and the retired clergy. In total we have had to draw down
circa £0.5 million from reserves over the last two years and obviously we
cannot keep on doing this indefinitely. It may not be appreciated by the proverbial
man in the pew, but I can assure you that the Allocations Committee, chaired by
Mr Graham Richards, spends untold hours in deliberation each year over requests
for assistance; indeed, that Committee has adopted a policy of ensuring that
recurring annual financial assistance for any particular purpose or
organisation is subjected to searching questions each year as priorities are
teased out in the long term interests of the Church.
It may be appropriate at this point to refer to section
45 of the Finance Act, 2001 in the Republic whereby Mr McCreavy has introduced
a new scheme of tax relief for Donations to Eligible Charities and Approved
Bodies. A form of tax relief in respect
of corporate donations to approved charities
in the Republic already exists but the new scheme will allow for
donations by individuals in very similar fashion to the Gift Aid scheme in the
United Kingdom. Relief will, I understand, be granted at the higher or marginal
rate of tax in the Republic and as you can imagine all of this is subject to
certain eligibility conditions and authorisation procedures. Primarily, to be
eligible, the charity must have been recognised as being established for
charitable purposes and have been granted exemption from taxation for the
previous three years. The RB will be communicating in some detail about all of
this with parishes and dioceses in the near future but at this juncture I wish
to thank the Minister for Finance for what appears to be a very welcome
initiative and potentially a financial boost for the charitable sector
including the all the churches.
The Investment Committee, chaired by Mr Richard Hewat,
met twelve times during the year, which gives a measure of the importance
attached to this aspect of the work.
The Committee meets on a regular basis with the RB’s fund managers and
this policy ensures that everyone concerned is kept on their toes! Efforts are being made on an ongoing basis
to obtain a higher income return from our capital without eroding that capital;
in the report you will also read that the matter of ethical investment is kept
under constant review, again in conjunction with our asset managers. The Republic, as everyone knows, will be
switching to the use of the Euro next January. This will entail a burden of
adjustment on everyday life, but the RB finance and IT staff, I can assure you,
hope to have made all the necessary
preparations in good time. As a first step in this major change, the Financial
Statements for 2000 on pages 33 to 45 have been expressed in punts and Euro
equivalents as has the recommendation for Minimum Stipends in the Republic for
next year. Before leaving investment matters, I should pay tribute to the
in-house team led by Philip Talbot; some of you may not know that his hobby is
bell-ringing. From time to time, I see
a southern registered car outside my parish of Drumbo on a Sunday morning and I
know that Philip is in the tower ringing with our local team.
The Stipends Committee is chaired by Mr Geoffrey Perrin;
again, the clergy have reason to be thankful for the painstaking hours which this Committee spends on their
behalf. The second half of the special
increase in stipends was instituted in January last. As you can read in the Report on p, 16 the Committee has
deliberated this year on the feasibility of putting in place an insurance
policy to cover long term illness of clergy; this already exists in some
dioceses, but in others, it puts a heavy burden on parishes if the rector is
incapacitated for any length of time.
The other ongoing discussion concerns the question of a severance
package for clergy moving out of the stipendiary ministry permanently, a
subject which is being partially explored by a Bill in the names of Canon
Condell and Archdeacon Good which was given its first reading yesterday.
The Property Committee has had a busy year and when one
considers that its Chairman, Mr Sydney
Gamble, hails from Strabane, one appreciates the dedication which this
Committee brings to its work. I will
let you into a secret – he now comes by air from Londonderry to Dublin, thus
saving a huge amount of time and stress! This committee and staff deal with a
huge amount of church property business, planning issues etc on behalf of the
parishes and the RB every year, but particularly in recent times when property
has been very high on many parishes’ agenda’s. Needless to say, the question of
the sale of the Palace at Kilkenny featured regularly and I expect that we will
hear more as we debate this annual report from the RB... It is unfortunate that this issue has caused
controversy and tension but the plain facts of the matter are fully summarised
in Appendix F on pp 59/62; I can only emphasise that the Representative Body
and its officers behaved with integrity throughout the entire proceedings; the
deal with the Heritage Council was drawn up with every possible advantage to
the Church, including the use of the function rooms on 15 specified days each
year. At the outset of my report, I
commented on the ongoing difficulty, which will not in any way diminish, of
finding new money for projects which cannot be substantiated. Although the figure of £800,000 is quoted as
the minimum necessary to preserve and
protect the heritage value of the Palace
without improving the living conditions or manageability of the house ,
we were advised that a considerably larger figure is likely to be necessary to
really guarantee the future of the Palace for the foreseeable future. No one is more heritage minded than I, as
many will know, but I have to ask how could the the RB justify this sum,
when the alternative of a transfer to the Heritage Council will ensure the
future of the building with every consideration for its history and its
association with the Cathedral Close..
On the same theme, the appointment of a new Bishop in Kilmore, Elphin
and Ardagh has prompted the RB and those dioceses to have thoughts about the
future of the See House at Cavan which, I believe, is even bigger than
Kilkenny. Discussions about the potential disposal of the See house for other
purposes are taking place at present
which also will involve consultation and decisions about a new permanent residence to house the Bishop and his family.
Last year, I reported that the RB had contributed towards
the refurbishment of Church House in Armagh; I am glad to report that the work
is now complete and the building is back in use, although, unfortunately, the
official opening and dedication has had to be postponed because of the
foot-and-mouth epidemic. A recent visit has confirmed that the money has been
well spent and that the building has been vastly improved.
At one of its
meetings, the Executive received a delegation from the Queen’s University
Chaplaincy led by the chaplain, Rev Andrew Forster. Those of you who may know this chaplaincy will remember that it
is a residential unit accommodating a number of students and also providing
facilities such as a café (which hosts around 250 for lunch each day) and a
worship centre which is open to all.
The facilities have not been updated since the unit was opened in 1966 [
apart from the alterations in 1986 to provide the Oasis café], and the RB was
requested to release some of the funds from the legacy of the late Professor
Beckett towards this work. This we were
happy to do,partly by way of outright grant from the Bequest capital and partly
by way of an interest free loan, to
enable the work to start; the initiative shown by the Forster team towards fund
raising was very impressive and I warmly commend the 50th
anniversary appeal which was recently launched by the Student Centre.
The Library and Archives Committee, for which I have a
soft spot, is well looked after by Mrs Mary Thomson; how she manages to drive
up from Galway as she so often does, complete with her canine family, remains a
mystery. Whilst much of this
Committee’s business is of a routine nature, it is increasingly becoming the
guardian of the church’s heritage in the widest sense beyond just the printed
word. We did manage, with professional help, to formulate a set of conditions
under which the disposal of church plate may, and I emphasise may, be
considered. These can be found in the
RB Report in Appendix B on pp 51/53 . A
survey has also been commenced with the intention of cataloguing all the
portraits scattered around the various see houses and cathedrals in the
country. It is something like 80 years
since this was last carried out and is thus somewhat overdue! If you know of any portraits which might
escape our attention, then please let Dr Refaussé know.
The newly formed Policy and Co-ordination Committee met
on a number of occasions; various topics have been aired but much more
discussion is necessary before changes can become effective. In essence this
committee is trying to become a bridge between the RB and the Standing
Committee and to promote a greater sense of co-ordination and understanding
between both bodies. It has had initial discussions on the role of the Primacy in the Church of the
future and how best the office of Primate can be supported .Also, how there
might be a bettter interaction between RB and SC by involving the Chief Officer at meetings of the
Standing Committee and some of the
Honorary Secretaries of General Synod at meetings of the RB and its
Executive Committee , non voting but all with a right to contribute to debate.
At the Synod in Belfast last year, Dean Chillingworth and
Canon Patterson posed two questions with regard to the Theological College;
Synod asked that these questions be referred to the Legal Advisory
Committee. The answers to the questions
posed can be found in Appendix E on p 58 .
The Church has been without a Director of Communications
for over twelve months and I would like to pay tribute to the sterling work
which has been carried out by Mr Brian Parker on a contractual basis during that period. I am pleased to report that the appointment
of Mrs Janet Maxwell has been confirmed by the Representative Body. Mrs Maxwell, a graduate of TCD, was born and
brought up in Dungannon and then worked in publishing in both Dublin and Cork.
Latterly, she has been in academic work in South Africa; she comes with
excellent credentials and will be commencing work with us in July/August.
Finally, I must thank not only my colleagues on the RB
and its various committees for their support at all times, but also the hugely
competent and dedicated staff at Church House.
Everyone who visits Church House is met with the utmost courtesy and
helpfulness; no query is too much trouble to answer. At the risk of over gilding the lily, my special thanks go to the
Chief Officer, Bob Sherwood and the Assistant Secretary, John Buttimore, whose
joint experience stretches, between them, to 90 odd years. Also, to Valerie
Beatty, Denis Reardon, Randall Plunkett and Philip Talbot all of whom serve the
Church with great enthusiasm and integrity.in their various roles !
[sherwood rankin speech]