THE former minister of Westerton Parish Church is warning people not to respond to bogus charity-style leaflets which are circulating in the area.
Eric Hudson from Westerton, Bearsden, has slammed the people distributing fliers which ask for donations of clothes and other items for the third world.
They are the work of a commercial company, but many people are fooled into thinking they are d
onating goods to charity when in fact they are sold on at a profit.
The firm, Helpmates Limited, claims goods will go to the third world, but concerns have been raised by charities and an MP about the group's activities.
The leaflets ask for gents, ladies and children's clothing, blankets, sheets, handbags, curtains, belts, hand and bath towels, cosmetics and perfumes.
Mr Hudson said: "I had a hunch that this wasn't legitimate and when I Googled it on the computer I was amazed at the amount of information that came up.
"I felt very uncomfortable about donating anything to a company instead of a charity as you don't know what it will be used for.
"I would much rather donate things to Oxfam or other charity shops which are reliable and genuine and I would urge others to do the same."
Local MP Jo Swinson has been aware of this scam for a while and is furious that the organisers are getting away with it.
She said: "People are increasingly familiar with the fliers that appear through their doors from time to time requesting donations and mimicking the appearance of charity fliers, but which are in fact issued by commercial collecting companies.
"However, the issue goes much deeper than just misleading advertising, and involves large-scale theft by organised criminal gangs. According to the Association of Charity Shops, the activity costs charities in this country between £2.5 million and £3million a year, which is a lot of money in the charitable sector.
"The fliers distributed by bogus charities are generally of a type. They refer to an urgent need for donations, describe the destination for those donations as third world countries and give the distinct impression that the appeal has a humanitarian motive.
"The less unscrupulous fliers may contain a company registration number, not a registered charity number, although some people may well be confused between the two, which is sometimes the point of including a company registration number."
Helpmates Limited was unavailable for comment.
