Iona Institute
Lolek CLG, operating under the business name the Iona Institute, is an Irish, socially conservative organisation that advocates the advancement and promotion of the Christian religion and what it sees as the religion's social and moral values. It has been frequently described as a Catholic pressure group. Founded by columnist David Quinn, it was launched publicly in 2007.
Iona promotes conservative Christian values and opposes abortion, euthanasia, assisted suicide, same-sex marriage, civil partnerships, lifting restrictions on divorce, adoptions by same-sex couples, sperm donation, egg donation, surrogacy and the children's rights referendum. It takes the view that crime is rising, family breakdown is increasing, and that drug abuse and other social problems are caused by fewer people obtaining opposite-sex marriages and participating in organised religion. The institute has released a number of reports and has also hosted talks in support of its aims. Quinn and other prominent members have weekly columns in Ireland's mainstream press.
In 2022, Iona was included in a list of extremist groups by the Global Project against Hate and Extremism, for which Iona was reportedly "consider legal action".
Background
Irish society underwent a period of rapid secularisation during the 1990s and 2000s. In 1992, two referendums established the right to travel abroad to obtain an abortion and the right to information about foreign abortion services. In 1993, homosexuality was decriminalised. The 1995 referendum approved the removal of the constitutional ban on divorce.Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, a series of criminal cases and Irish government enquiries established that hundreds of Catholic priests had abused thousands of children over decades. The widespread abuse scandals and cover-ups by Church authorities led to a decline in influence of the Catholic Church in Irish society.
The Iona Institute was formed in 2006 to promote Christian social teachings in an attempt to prevent and reverse the secularisation of Irish society.
Incorporation
Lolek Ltd was incorporated on 16 August 2006 as a company limited by guarantee. "Lolek" was the childhood nickname of Pope John Paul II. Lolek registered the business name "The Iona Institute" which it operates under in public. "Iona" is a reference to Iona Abbey which was an important centre of Celtic Christianity founded by Irish monks.Unlike the UK, the word "Institute" is not a protected term in Ireland and can be used in the name of any company.
The use of "institute" has been challenged by notable public commentators such as Graham Norton who said "it is just a feeble attempt to give themselves a veneer of considered intellectual respectability." David Norris referred to "the so-called Iona Institute" as "an unelected, unrepresentative group of reactionary, right-wing, religiously motivated people".
In 2016, the company changed its name to Lolek CLG as required under the Companies Act 2014. It also adopted a new constitution.
Lolek CLG is a company limited by guarantee and does not have share capital or shareholders. The company consists of eight members, whose liability to the company upon winding-up is limited to a maximum of €1 each.
Lolek's current board members are John Murray, Sean Ascough, Evanna Boyle, Brendan Conroy, Eanna Johnston and Tom Finegan. Lolek's former members include: Tom Ascough, Patrick Kenny, Susan Hegarty, John Reid, Andrew O'Connell and John Smyth.
Lolek also has self-described "patrons" associated with the company; the psychiatrist Patricia Casey, columnist Breda O'Brien, Roman Catholic priest Vincent Twomey, James Sheehan, and Church of Ireland bishop Ken Clarke. Dr. Angelo Bottone serves as a part-time research officer for the institute.
Ideology
Iona is commonly described as right-wing, conservative Catholic lobby group.Lolek's founding memorandum of association states their objective as "he advancement and promotion of the Christian religion, its social and moral values, and the doing of all such other things as are incidental or conductive to the attainment of that object."
In 2013, Iona spokesperson Patricia Casey denied that it was specifically Catholic or Christian, saying "We support the role of religion in society but we're not a religiously-based organisation." In 2014, John Murray said that the Church of Ireland bishop Ken Clarke's becoming a patron proved Iona's stances were "not specific to any particular Christian denomination."
Lolek's registered address is 23 Merrion Square, Dublin which it shares with a number of Roman Catholic organisations:
- Vocations Society of St Joseph – which supports young men training to be Catholic priests;
- Pure in Heart – which promotes the Roman Catholic Church and evangelises school children and young people to practice chastity;
- Columba Press – which publishes Catholic religious and theological books;
- Apostolate of Eucharistic Adoration – which promotes Eucharistic adoration in dioceses and parishes, conformity with Roman Catholic teachings and full obedience to bishops and priests;
- The Irish Catholic was registered at the address for the period 2015 to 2020. David Quinn is a former editor and weekly columnist for the paper.
- Religious Vocation Association – a former charity set-up for the "advancement of religion". The Charities Regulator deregistered the organisation from the Register of Charities as it was deemed to no longer have an exemption under Irish tax law.
- Vocations Ireland – a registered charity for the "advancement of religion" formerly operated from the address. It is now registered care of the Missionaries of Africa CLG in Templeogue, Dublin. As of April 2022, the charity is not fully compliant with Charities Governance Code. The charity's explanation for non-compliance is that it is winding up.
Charitable status
In the run-up to the 2015 same-sex marriage referendum, opponents argued that Iona's activities were political and that it was therefore legally required to register with the Standards in Public Office Commission, which monitors political donations. Organisations which receive a donation of €100 or more for political purposes are considered a "third party" and must register with SIPO and submit their accounts for analysis. On 20 February, SIPO contacted Iona and asked them to consider whether they were required to register as a third party and to confirm whether they had received political donations exceed the €100 threshold and to reply before the 31 March deadline.
On 4 March, Iona told SIPO that it did not receive any political donations exceeding €100 and that it was not going to register as a third party. Atheist Ireland wrote to SIPO on 20 April with examples of political activity carried out by Iona. SIPO responded that it is their practice to accept a group's declaration that it has considered whether it is a third party and that it has not received a political donation.
However, on 23 April, seven weeks after declaring that they had not received any relevant political donations, Iona reversed its decision and registered as a third party. Iona explained that its change of policy was because it wanted to "play a fuller part" in the referendum and that intended to distribute "a minimum of half a million leaflets".
Lolek's financial statements reveal that it received a total of €355,437 in donations during 2015; consisting of €149,830 "regular" donations and €205,607 relating to the marriage referendum. A substantial increase in revenue compared to receiving just €202,677 donations in 2014 and only €170,032 in 2014. The statements report that all of Lolek's income is attributable to the Irish market.
In 2018, the same year as the abortion referendum, Lolek received €441,696 in donations. Again a substantial increase compared with receiving €218,798 in the prior year and €208,130 in the following year. No breakdown was provided as to how much were regular donations and how much were political donations.
In 2016, Lolek adopted a new constitution which removed prior explicit references to the promotion of Christianity and Christian social and moral values from the object of the company. The 2016 constitution gives the objects for which the company was established to be he promotion and advancement of marriage and religion in society and the doing of all such other things as are incidental or conductive to the attainment of the above object."
Funding
Lolek is required to report its income by filing annual financial statements with the Companies Registration Office. Lolek does not disclose the source of its income other than it consists of private donations received due to its activity in Ireland.The source of Iona's funding and whether it is compliant with Irish law have been regularly raised in the Irish media, in Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann. However, no evidence of irregularities has ever emerged.
In 2021, the European Parliamentary Forum for Sexual and Reproductive Rights published a report, "Tip of the Iceberg", which claimed that the Iona Institute, among others, had received substantial funding from Russia to pursue an anti-gender/anti-trans rights agenda. The Novae Terrae Foundation was identified as the immediate donor to the Iona Institute, after it had in turn benefited from €2.39 million from a Russian-Azerbaijani "laundromat" designed to channel funds to like-minded campaign groups. It states that some of this funding was then routed to the European Christian Political Movement, which campaigns on a socially conservative and Christian right basis. In a blog entry, founder David Quinn called the claim "absurd".
While the Novae Terrae Foundation was never investigated and continued its charitable activities, its founder was charged for money laundering and bribery, and eventually acquitted.
During the 2015 marriage referendum campaign, David Quinn admitted that a substantial amount of Iona's foreign funding, around €24,000, came from the Novae Terrae Foundation. He denied that the money was used in the marriage referendum campaign.
David Quinn contributed an essay to the 2010 publication Exiting a Dead End Road: A GPS for Christians in Public Discourse which was funded by the Novae Terrae Foundation.