Hello and welcome to today's Guardian Voluntary Sector Network daily digest, where we bring you the latest comment, news, views and analysis from the sector.
• To start it off, Martin Sime, chief executive of the Scottish Council of Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), commented on the launch of the Scottish government's white paper on independence. He argued for greater involvement from Scottish communities in the independence debate, and emphasised the continued fight for social equality. "This is a progressive government which supports the work of charities and third-sector organisations, and shares many of our values. This shows in the white paper, but equality and social justice will always have to be fought for, independence or not," he said.
• Elsewhere, Third Sector reported that the former treasurer of a local fundraising charity has been jailed for 20 months for stealing more than £6,000 from the organisation. Michael Garner was sentenced on Friday after pleading guilty to five counts of theft from the Cheadle and Gatley Round Table.
• In other news the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) reported that the Philippines Typhoon appeal has reached £63m in under two weeks. DEC chief executive Saleh Saeed commented: "Every donation is making a difference to people in desperate need, enabling our member aid agencies to respond quickly and effectively in some of the worst-hit areas."
• Also, today we will be live-blogging from the Festival of Fundraising 2013 Innovation event, hosted by the Institute of Fundraising. The Festival will be opened by Simon Gillespie, chief executive of the British Heart Foundation and closed by worldwide pioneers in innovation Google. Follow us @GdnVoluntary today for twitter updates, using the hashtag #iofinnovate.
If there's a story, report or event you'd like to highlight – or you'd like to share your thoughts on any voluntary sector issues in the news today – you can get in touch by leaving a comment below the line or tweeting us at @GdnVoluntary.
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