The heavy hand of 'guild regulation' in the style of the Financial Conduct Authority might be about to settle on the UK's charity sector.

When high-net-worth individuals subsidise charities in future, some of their money may be siphoned off into the pockets of the regulators.

At present, the commission recieves a government grant for its operations. When Compliance Matters asked why its board might want to charge charities a levy, a spokesman said: "At the moment, there's been no decision to go ahead with that model. We are going to consult people shortly. At our last meeting we outlined some possible ways it might happen. The initiative is not a result of the Government wanting to save money; it comes from the leadership of the Charity Commission."

The spokesman did not know whether or not the commission was considering a 'graduated income tax' whereby the richest charities would pay a higher percentage than the poorer. When asked what the commission wanted the extra money for, he replied mysteriously: "We do receive a grant from the Treasury but this new levy could pay for the sort of services we want to deliver in future."

When asked to have another try at answering the question, he said: "It's so that we can be a robust and modern regulator."

The commission's reason for wanting to break with decades of funding practice therefore remains a conundrum. The National Association for Voluntary and Community Action, however, has just published the results of a survey among charities in England and Wales which shows that 77% disapprove of having to pay for the privilege of being interfered with.