Amnesty International faces Charity Commission probe after it dubbed JK Rowling's rape support centre 'anti-rights'

By DAN BARKER, REPORTER and TOM GORDON, SCOTTISH DAILY MAIL DEPUTY POLITICAL EDITOR Published: 20:34, 16 July 2026 | Updated: 20:34, 16 July 2026 A probe has been launched by the charity regulator after Amnesty International dubbed JK Rowling’s rape support centre ‘anti-rights’. The Charity Commission said they were ‘assessing matters raised’ after receiving a complaint about the organisation. Ms Rowling was left furious when Beira’s Place, the service she set up to support women victims of sexual abuse, was attacked in a report released by the high-profile organisation. The centre, which was set up amid controversy surrounding Rape Crisis Edinburgh’s transgender chief executive, this week threatened to sue to sue the organisation. Ms Rowling also said she would complain to the Charity Commission, and the watchdog has now said it is looking into it. A Charity Commission spokesman said: ‘We can confirm that concerns have been raised with us about a briefing published by Amnesty International UK Charitable Trust. ‘In line with our guidance, the charity has also submitted a serious incident report. ‘We are assessing the matters raised to determine what, if any, role there might be for us as charity law regulator.’ Amnesty International UK is structured in a way which means it has two separate legal entities, of which there is a charitable trust and a limited company.  Beira's Place board of directors (left to right) Susan Smith, JK Rowling, Johann Lamont, Margaret McCartney and Rhona Hotchkiss Each is governed by its own board. Meanwhile, Sex Matters, which helped support nurse Sandie Peggie in her fight against NHS Fife, has written to the Charity Commission’s chief executive Dame Julia Unwin after it was named in the report. The organisation, which joined dozens of other organisations in writing to the charity watchdog, said: ‘The commission should stand up against the culture of intolerance and discrimination towards people who express ordinary, lawful beliefs that has taken hold across the sector, and which has been demonstrated in the Amnesty reports.’ Speaking on a visit to Aberdeen, UK Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said: ‘JK Rowling, For Women Scotland, Sex Matters, these are people who are pro-women’s rights. ‘They have fought for women’s rights in the face of immense attacks and defamation and they stayed strong. ‘These are proud British and Scottish women. ‘They’re not going to be pushed around by anybody - definitely not silly people in Amnesty International who don’t know what they’re talking about.’ An Amnesty spokesman said they were aware of the report to the Charity Commission and were ‘engaging constructively with the process’. The spokesman added: ‘We can confirm that we will not be republishing the briefing.’