MS sufferers demand emergency talks over charity's split threat

Published on Thursday 16 April 2009 22:02

MULTIPLE sclerosis sufferers are calling for an emergency meeting to discuss the future of MS Society Scotland, amid growing calls for the body to break away from its UK parent charity.

Campaigners in Caithness are writing to all 34 other branches of the MS Society Scotland to seek an extraordinary general meeting in the wake of JK Rowling's decision to quit as patron last week.

The Harry Potter author – who has helped to raise millions of pounds to support Scotland's 10,000 MS sufferers – revealed the move after becoming dismayed by what she described as a charity that was "changing beyond all recognition".

The fall-out centres on moves by the charity's UK board of trustees to strip MS Society Scotland's elected council of its powers.

That has sent shock waves throughout many of the charity's 4,500 members in Scotland – leading to mounting calls for the charity to break away from MS Society.

Caithness branch chairwoman Patricia Stanley

said: "Should sufficient members wish to have such a meeting, we will be proposing a motion that the society in Scotland breaks away from the UK-wide organisation.

"We believe this will best serve the interests of people affected by MS in Scotland," she said.

She said members were concerned by recent developments which saw the Scottish council suspended by the charity's London-based board of trustees last autumn.

"They were reinstated earlier this year and then suspended again last week," said Mrs Stanley. "It seems this further suspension precipitated JK Rowling's decision.

"As a branch of the MS Society we have tried our hardest to find out what has been happening at the senior level of our organisation but no explanation has been forthcoming."

Simon Gillespie, chief executive of MS Society UK, and Tony Kennan, the charity's chairman, has now written to every member in Scotland to give their account of events, in a bid to quell anger over Rowling's departure.

Meanwhile, Scotland's biggest MS Society branch is seeking to bring the heads of the UK and Scottish societies together to explain the situation to members at a meeting next month.

Ayrshire and Arran branch chairman Donald McNeill said members wanted to know why the democratically elected volunteers who sit on the council – which helps to lead the charity in Scotland – were stripped of their powers.

"Some of the branches I have spoken to, and members within my own branch, are talking about investigating the possibility of independence," he said.

Sherine Krause, acting director of MS Society Scotland, said it was happy to discuss the "pros and cons" of independence.

"The UK board has always said that if members in Scotland vote to go it alone, we will work with them to help the MS Society Scotland set up as an independent body.

"MS doesn't respect national boundaries and the board believes where something is best dealt with UK-wide, like research or information, that's how we should handle it."