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The Bribery Act: What is a gift too far?

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6th Dec 2010
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Next April will see the implementation of the Bribery Act which will consolidate existing laws on bribery and reform criminal law to create a set of specific offences designed to combat bribery in the public and private sectors.

While the Act provides a much more effective legal framework to combat bribery it also presents directors with an additional legislative checklist and regulatory burden. Teams should take action now in order to familiarise themselves with the legislation and effectively prepare for the Act or risk major financial penalties, and, in some instances, jail. 

Corporate hospitality: How prepared is your business?
The Act covers day-to-day practices of businesses, including corporate hospitality. Draft guidance issued by the Ministry of Justice has indicated that all businesses – regardless of size or sector – will have to keep records of the hospitality they receive or give, from Christmas gifts and free events, to hotel accommodation offered to potential clients for in exchange for their attendance at product launches. Companies will have to think twice about the full range of corporate hospitality, as many aspects of it could be interpreted as a bribe.

The key measures of the act are:

  • Creates offences of offering, promising or giving of a bribe and requesting, agreeing to receive or accepting of a bribe either in the UK or abroad, in the public or private sectors.
  • Creates a discrete offence of bribery of a foreign public official in order to obtain or retain business.
  • Creates a new offence in relation to commercial organisations which fail to prevent a bribe being paid by those who perform services for or on behalf of the organisation.

All offences carry a maximum prison sentence of 10 years, with the exception of the offence relating to failure to prevent bribery, which carries an unlimited fine. Where a director is convicted of bribery, they may also be disqualified from holding a director position for up to 15 years.

 

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Replies (8)

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By cymraeg_draig
06th Dec 2010 14:14

What is a gift too far?

Ask FIFA - Sep Blatter is an expert on bribes - he's received enough of then.

 

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7om
By Tom 7000
08th Dec 2010 11:32

Fifa

harsh comment, but on balance fair

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By ricbol
08th Dec 2010 12:13

Who is going to enforce the new Bribery law?

I have had particular problems reporting cases of commercial fraud to Police, and other authorities such as BIS, FSA,  & SFO who are either not victim-friendly or actually have no responsibility for accepting cases from the Public - it seems that nobody wants to enforce the law, despite the law being introduced in 2007 (Fraud Act 2006) and being very good law.

The Bribery Act may be needed and well drafted, as the Fraud Act is and was, but who is going to enforce it, and give individuals a sense of support when they report bribery?

Does anybody want to admit that it is their job to deal with this particular law? Who will take responsibility for accepting reports of bribery from members of the Public and who will enforce this new law?  I fear that it will be difficult to report ordinary cases, and in the end will become unenforced except in very select cases.

Dick Bollard.

 

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By richardterhorst
08th Dec 2010 12:28

Bribery

 Pity FIFA is not a registered body in the UK.

But does the EU not have tough bribery laws? Or is it again a gold plating in the UK of mild EU directives.

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By VIOLA26
08th Dec 2010 12:42

FIFA

Potential libel! Nothing has been proved re FIFA.  Innocent until proven guilty.  Sour grapes because the Russians got our World Cup and all they give us in return is their weather! 

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By chatman
08th Dec 2010 13:39

Why?

I don't know much about this; why would we want the world Cup to be held here?

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By rquaye
08th Dec 2010 14:27

Bribbery - FIFA

Caan you prove that Seb Blatter took any bribe. Our reaction is sending a wrong message to the rest world. We are behaving as if we don't have  bribery and corruption here. Johnson & Johnson  and Balfour Beatty comes to mind. Every form of bribery is wrong.

FIFA has made the decision and so we should all support these Countries to do well, I remember when South Afica was awarded the opportunity to host the World Cup, if we had gone by what the British press were saying, the event would have been a flop but they organised an excellent event to the shame of those doomsayers. We are at it again, have we asked ourselves why England got only 2 votes despite all the supposed promises and please don't blame the journalists.

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By cfield
08th Dec 2010 16:47

World Cup in Wales?

CD, you have just blown any chance Wales might have had of hosting the World Cup. Mr Blatter will now say to his committee as they prepare to vote "Gentlemen, do not forget the evils of the Welsh Dragon".

Chris

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