Lodewijk wrote " I can imagine that whether Wikipedia is publicly beneficial is not really into question" ... actually ... it is.
This is not about reality but law. In this case we need to prove that Wikipedia is of public benefit. As Fae notes, WMUK raises funds which it uses in part to fund Wikipedia. If we can prove that Wikipedia is useful then WMUK can prove its value (in UK charity law). (Most people would think that increasing knowledge is of public benefit, but not according to UK charity law.)
Yes, I agree it is confusing; however as WM-UK contributes a
significant sum of money from the UK fundraiser (more than half) to
WMF and organizes events that promote the use and improvement of
Wikimedia projects, that these outcomes have public benefit in the
context of our UK charity's mission is as important to demonstrate as
our direct activities.
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