Bribery Bill amendments cause for concern

Thursday, 07 January 2010

Expressing concern over some of the proposed amendments to the Government's Bill as introduce on 19th November, Chandrashekhar Krishnan, Executive Director of Transparency International UK said:

"Any amendments proposed must seek to strengthen the law and faciliate, rather than hinder, the swift enactment of the Bill. We have strong concerns that some of the amendments reservations suggested could weaken the case for prosecution of bribery, dilute clarity around the definition of bribery and reopen issues that could derail the process. We greatly welcome cross-party commitment to bring a new Bribery Act into existence as soon as possible."

The Bill is the product of lengthy and conscientious deliberation.  It follows closely the 2008 recommendations of the Law Commission and the excellent report and recommendations of the all-party Joint Scrutiny Committee (JSC).

Transparency International UK believes the Bill as introduced, represents the best possible consensus that can be attained among a wide range of stakeholders on a modern, effective legal framework to prosecute bribery and make the United Kingdom (UK) compliant with the 1997 OECD Anti-Bribery Convention.

For more information

Please read Transparency International UK's  briefing on the marshalled list of amendments to be moved at Grand Committee.