Conclusion 7

We note the Charity Commission’s acceptance of the court’s decision to refuse it permission to proceed with its judicial review. However, we find it hard to believe that the Charity Commission ever got itself into a position where it believed its best course of action was to pursue legal action against another publicly funded organisation. This had considerable consequences, including: • the significant cost to the taxpayer; • being found in contempt of Parliament by the Committee of Privileges; 72 • causing additional and unnecessary work for the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman; and • most importantly, causing further upset and inconvenience to the two complainants at the heart of the reports in question. (Conclusion, Paragraph 54)