The Boardroom Blog

Bribery Act: seven weeks left to act

Tuesday, May 10, 2011 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Corruption, Thought Leadership | Tags: risk, due diligence, Bribery Act, legislation, bribery, anti-corruption, corruption, anti-corruption legislation, assessment

The UK Bribery Act comes into force on 1 July 2011 and in our experience companies underestimate the time required to implement an anti-corruption strategy. So for those who have yet to act, and have less than two months to do so, what do you need to know?

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Bribery Act debate: Adequate procedures?

Monday, February 07, 2011 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Corruption | Tags: FTSE 350, Bribery Act, bribe, robust internal controls, associated persons, adequate procedures

Sterl Greenhalgh, partner and head of Grant Thornton’s anti-corruption group, talks about adequate procedures and how businesses are not struggling to understand what they are, but cites aspects of the legislation such as ‘associated persons’ as areas causing UK business the most problems.

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Bribery Act debate: When is corporate hospitality not corporate hospitality and other grey areas?

Monday, February 07, 2011 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Corruption | Tags: Bribery Act, private banking, FCPA, sponsorship, facilitation payments, grease payments, anti-corruption legislation, Formula 1, Transparency International, financial services, adequate procedures, business gifts, public officials, anti-corruption programs, corporate hospitality

Christophe Amez, Dow Jones Risk & Compliance, highlights some of the frustrations companies are facing - citing 65% of businesses questioned by Dow Jones, as delaying or abandoning all together new initiatives because of lack of clarity around anti corruption legislation.

Nicola Bonucci, OECD’s director for legal affairs and Sterl Greenhalgh, partner and head of Grant Thornton’s anti-corruption group, address the issues of what constitutes ‘lavish’ corporate hospitality and facilitation payments

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Bribery Act debate: Facilitation payments & the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA)

Monday, February 07, 2011 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Corruption | Tags: Bribery Act, OECD, gifts, FCPA, bribe, hospitality, facilitation payments, anti-bribery, government officials, anti-corruption culture

Can British companies complying with the FCPA be in conflict with the UK Bribery Act?  David Lorello, partner, Steptoe & Johnson, Nicola Bonucci, OECD’s director for legal affairs and Sterl Greenhalgh, partner and head of Grant Thornton’s anti-corruption group, discuss how companies can reconcile possible conflict.

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Bribery Act debate: Why are we where we are? The real impact of corruption.

Monday, February 07, 2011 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Corruption, Risk | Tags: Bribery Act, OECD, bribe, final adequate procedures guidance, facilitation payments, City of London Police Overseas Corruption Unit, anti-bribery, white collar crime, growth review, Coalition Government, facilitation, overseas embassies, Haiti, Anti-corruption

Bribery is more than just a white collar crime.  Nicola Bonucci, OECD’s director for legal affairs, explores the public policy issues associated with bribery and emphasises the message that the Bribery Act is good for clean businesses who want to compete on a level playing field.

Sterl Greenhalgh, partner and head of Grant Thornton’s anti-corruption group, picks up on whether UK Government is providing enough support to business.

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Bribery Act debate: Enforcement - will it be taken seriously?

Monday, February 07, 2011 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Corruption, Non-executive director, Risk | Tags: M&A, CFO, due diligence, Bribery Act, bribery, Companies Act, non-executive directors, G20, board of directors, corruption risk assessment, enforcement, Transparency International, Proceeds of Crime Act, growth review, collective action, infrastructure projects, BAE Systems, risk assessment, World Bank, Adequate procedures

What guarantee is there that enforcement will be taken seriously?  Panel members discuss not only trends in enforcement but the commercial efficiencies of having systems in place to prevent bribery.

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Perception vs reality of corporate corruption risk (infographic)

Friday, September 17, 2010 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Corruption | Tags: emerging markets, risk,, survey,, business,, statistics,, corruption,, infographic,, chart,, perception,

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Bribes, backhanders, suspiciously lavish corporate hospitality, corrupt officials or local operators on the make… corruption oils the wheels of industry in markets across the world. But the stakes of being associated with these got markedly higher this year with the new UK Bribery Act. Is your company aware of the risks?

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What to put on the board’s anti-corruption agenda

Monday, June 21, 2010 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Corruption, Governance, Research, Thought Leadership

Since the draft Bribery Bill was first published in 2008, it is not just the law that has changed but also attitudes to its enforcement.

There has been an unprecedented level of engagement ahead of the enactment of new legislation by the lead law enforcement agency.

However, despite this increased enforcement activity, our

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Risk, Fraud and Corruption workshop for experienced non-executive directors

Thursday, May 06, 2010 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Corruption, Fraud, Governance, Non-executive director, Risk | Tags: FTSE 350, non-executive director, UK Corporate Governance Code, corporate governance review

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The Financial Times Non-Executive Directors Club is holding a practical and interactive workshop for experienced non-executives on 10 June 2010 to discuss the implications of risk, fraud and corruption to the non-executive directors’ role.

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