A charity boss who was disqualified over “Islamophobic” social media posts has won a landmark legal victory, successfully overturning a decision by the Charity Commission in a case with significant free speech implications.
Gary Mond, a former trustee of the Jewish National Fund UK (JNF UK), was disqualified in 2023 after historic social media posts, deemed “anti-Muslim” by critics, came to light. The Commission also cited posts by others that Mond had “liked”, including content from Pamela Geller, a controversial American commentator barred from entering the UK due to “extremist” views.
Following an investigation by Jewish News in January 2022, which uncovered the social media posts, Mond initially refused to stand aside from his role as Senior Vice-President of the Board of Deputies of British Jews. His position became untenable after a vote by the Board’s trustees, and he subsequently resigned, calling it an “attempt to silence contradictory thought”. He remained in his role at JNF UK, where he served as treasurer, until stepping down in February 2023.
Not long after, the Charity Commission launched its own inquiry into Mond’s social media activity. Citing concerns about potential damage to public confidence in the charities he was associated with, the Charity Commission moved to disqualify him later that year. Mond formally contested this decision, appealing to the First-tier Tribunal (Charity) – a move that led to a landmark ruling in his favour.
The tribunal acknowledged that some of Mond’s posts could be “perceived as anti-Islam” but upheld his right to freedom of expression. It found that his social media activity, spanning from 2014 to 2021, did not amount to conduct rendering him unfit to serve as a trustee. The Charity Commission had sought to justify the disqualification on the grounds of maintaining public trust in charities. However, in a ruling handed down last week, the tribunal said it was neither proportionate nor necessary and should be reversed.
Among the posts in question was one in which Mond expressed concern that if a significant number of Labour MPs were Muslim, “the Britain that we knew will have gone forever.” In another, he stated that “civilisation” was “at war with Islam” – a comment he later clarified was intended to refer to “Islamic fundamentalism” rather than the religion itself.
His social media activity only became an issue after it was reported in the press, prompting scrutiny from the Charity Commission. Following an investigation, the regulator concluded that his posts could damage the reputation of the charities he was associated with, issuing a two-and-a-half-year disqualification from acting as a trustee or senior manager – the shortest such order it had ever made, and one that has now been quashed on appeal.
Mond, a Cambridge-educated accountant who has served on the advisory board of the Conservative Friends of Israel and currently chairs the advisory board for the National Jewish Assembly, spent more than £60,000 fighting the case. He has consistently rejected any suggestion that he is “Islamophobic”.
Speaking to The Telegraph, he said: “The outcome of this case, which was an appalling waste of both taxpayers’ money and my own, says infinitely more about the Charity Commission than it does about me. It shows that a government body is prepared to judge the suitability of individuals to be charity trustees on the basis of their political beliefs and not merely their behaviour in their charity work.
“As a trustee I worked hard and behaved entirely properly. I did not steal money, nor did I mismanage any charity. It should not be any business of the Charity Commission what I choose to write on social media on matters totally unconnected to charities.
Mond added: “I hope that the powers that be will investigate the Charity Commission’s actions. It is not for me to call for resignations, but I think that the Commission’s reputation has been severely damaged, and steps to prevent this type of behaviour from a government institution ever happening again need to be taken.”
A spokesperson for the regulator said: “The outcome of this case brings more clarity to trustees’ appropriate use of social media, underlining the need for all trustees to act in the best interests of their charity, including while posting in a personal capacity.”
The case marks the first time the Charity Commission has had a disqualification order overturned, raising questions about the extent to which regulatory bodies should police the personal speech of individuals serving in charitable roles.
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