Contains public sector information licensed under the Open UK Government Licence v3.0. Version OGW 1, Published January 2020 © Crown Copyright, 2020.
In 2011, the UK Ministry of Justice published its first statutory guidance under the UK Bribery Act 2010 to help organisations understand the sorts of procedure they can put in place to prevent bribery committed by their ‘associates’ (i.e. their employees or agents) on their behalf.
These principles are still valid and regularly reviewed. By observing the outcome of the FCPA or the UK Bribery Act prosecutions we can see that those who got fines failed to implement them in the course of their compliance effort.
This blog entry refers to the most recent version of the UK Ministry of Justice guidance.
These Six Principles include:
Principle 1: Proportionate Procedures
A commercial organisation’s procedures to prevent bribery by persons associated with it are proportionate to the bribery risks it faces and to the nature, scale and complexity of the commercial organisation’s activities. They are also clear, practical, accessible, effectively implemented and enforced.
Principle 2: Top Level Commitment
The top-level management of a commercial organisation (be it a board of directors, the owners or any other equivalent body or person) are committed to preventing bribery by persons associated with it. They foster a culture within the organisation in which bribery is never acceptable I this section, inter alia, we can read that a “bonus culture” encourages risk- taking.
Principle 3: Risk Assessment
The commercial organisation assesses the nature and extent of its exposure to potential external and internal risks of bribery on its behalf by persons associated with it. The assessment is periodic, informed and documented.
Common external risks included in the Guidance are:
- Country
- Sectoral
- Transactional
- Business opportunity
- Business partnership
Common internal factors which may increase the level of risk included in the Guidance are:
- Deficiencies in employee training, skills, and knowledge
- A “bonus culture” that encourages risk- taking
- Lack of clarity regarding hospitality and promotional policies and procedures
- Lack of clear financial controls
- Lack of a clear message from the top
Principle 4: Due Diligence
The commercial organisation applies due diligence procedures, taking a proportionate and risk based approach, in respect of persons who perform or will perform services for or on behalf of the organisation, in order to mitigate identified bribery risks.
Principle 5: Communication (including training)
The commercial organisation seeks to ensure that its bribery prevention policies and procedures are embedded and understood throughout the organisation through internal and external communication, including training that is proportionate to the risks it faces.
Under the principle of communication, the Guidance addresses a number of important issues, including:
- Training, especially tailored training for those in high-risk functions such as purchasing, contracting, distribution and marketing, or those working in high-risk locations, or involved in ‘speak up’ procedures (e.g. whistleblowing). Effective training is continuous, and regularly monitored and evaluated.
- Potential training of third parties: it may be appropriate to require them to undergo training, particularly for high-risk associated persons, or to encourage them to adopt bribery prevention training.
- Internal communication, including policies, penalties for breach of the rules and management responsibilities at different levels.
- Secure, confidential and accessible means for employees and agents to obtain prompt compliance advice and to raise concerns about bribery.
Principle 6: Monitoring, Review & Incident Response
The commercial organisation monitors and reviews procedures designed to prevent bribery by persons associated with it and makes improvements where necessary.
Source: https://www.sfo.gov.uk/publications/guidance-policy-and-protocols/guidance-for-corporates/evaluating-a-compliance-programme/ [accessed: 2022-03-17]
Thank you for bearing with me 🙂