"It is vital that the sector’s independence and freedom of speech are protected to allow charities and social enterprises to continue providing a voice for everyday people", May said in the letter, as quoted by the newspaper.
May said in a letter to charities that officials were looking at how their contracts with the government could be amended to make sure that charity organisations and social enterprises could speak up against government policies, according to The Times.
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The Times said it had examined 38,500 documents related to government contracts signed since 2015 and found 398 deals with clauses prohibiting organisations from taking action that could cause negative publicity for the "authority" commissioning the work.