Woke fury: Royal British Legion accused of 'using donations to fund large corporate payroll instead of aiding veterans'

“Although the big charities like the RBL, SSAFA, Help for Heroes do great work, we’re finding more and more veterans turning away from them. They can’t get through the bureaucracy.

“What they’re finding is bloated corporate organisations (a large proportion who aren’t even veterans) using donations to fund their large payrolls whilst they sit on hundreds of millions in investment portfolios, instead of being used to help veterans directly.”

Although not controlled by charities like the RBL, some veterans’ war pensions pay just £65 a week.

According to the Charity Commission, the RBL recorded an income of £147 million in 2023. They spent £180 million, with £133 million going to ‘charitable activities’ and £46 million used for ‘raising funds and other expenditure’.

This latter figure includes paying 1,649 employees, of which seven receive over £100,000 per year.

RBL’s use of funds for Diversity and Inclusion has seen them come under fire from their own supporters. David Gagen, a managing director from Swindon, commented: “I have supported the RBL for almost 40 years in uniform and out.

“I have raised lots for the charity. This is just more woke nonsense. I will be cancelling my membership and will not include RBL as a charity to support until it returns to its roots and spends its funds on supporting veterans not this rubbish.”

Businessman David Mann commented: “My wife has been a poppy seller for many years and is now being confronted with people who don't want to donate for poppies. How can we make sure all the money collected goes to those that need it?”

Geoff Hewitt said: “I am not particularly wealthy but make regular donations to the RBL to honour the memory of my late father who served in WW2.

“I did not realise that my small donation was going, not to current ex-servicemen having a hard time, but to a 'Head of Diversity & Inclusion.'

“I fear that the RBL has lost contact with its roots, and from now on I will find an alternative military charity with more relevant ambitions.”

Reform MP Richard Tice posted: “What on earth are Royal British Legion doing wasting huge poppy donations on woke diversity nonsense?

“Millions of us will donate to other veterans' charities if they carry on like this.

Get a grip.”

A spokesperson for the Royal British Legion said:

‘We are sorry to hear the concerns some veterans have raised with GB News and would urge them to get in touch with us so we can better understand their experiences.

"Last year, the RBL helped 27,000 people, and spent £18million from our reserves to support our most vulnerable beneficiaries with the increased cost of living.

‘We hold reserves to protect our beneficiaries and ensure that our vital services can continue in the event of a loss of fundraising income.

"The RBL is heavily dependent on volunteer support and donations from the public to carry out our work, and 50% of RBL funds are raised in a two-week period during the Poppy Appeal.

"Our biggest risk is that our income suddenly drops due to unforeseen factors outside of our control, as happened during the Covid-19 pandemic, which prevent us from fundraising. In these circumstances, reserves are needed to ensure we can continue to support the Armed Forces community.

"We would encourage anyone who is in need of support from the Royal British Legion to contact us on 0808 802 8080."

The RBL’s head of Head of Diversity and Inclusion wrote on LinkedIn: “My role is to drive change to become a more diverse and inclusive organisation.

“You would come to me if you want to chat or get advice on how to reach out to different and diverse audiences or make your services more accessible or generally find out more about equality issues.

“Some of my big projects are helping to support our wonderful Diversity & Inclusion Staff Networks, making sure our D&I data is as accurate as possible so we can track our progress better and legislation changes in the next year around flexible working and carers’ leave.”

The Royal British Legion’s Poppy Campaign launches today with the aim of highlighting mental scars soldiers can endure during conflict.

Poppy appeal collectors and veterans met the Prime Minister in 10 Downing Street this week as he made his donation to the Royal British Legion ahead of the official launch.

The Royal British Legion has been contacted for comment.