These days we’re all too aware of allegations of bribery and corruption in the business world, most recently from the Fifa scandal that continues to rumble on.
With effect from from the 1st July 2011 The Bribery Act 2010 came into force across the UK.
So what does this mean for you?
A quick overview of the Bribery Act
The purpose of the Act is to stamp out bribery and corruption in the workplace. There are three principal offences under the Act, which are:
- Offering or receiving a bribe
- Bribing a foreign public official
- Failing to prevent a bribe being paid on an organisation’s behalf.
Offering or receiving a bribe
Under the Act it is an offence to offer or give a financial or other advantage to someone else for the purpose of influencing them to perform their relevant function or activity improperly or as a reward for something they have already done.
By ‘improper’ the Act means performing in a way which goes against good faith, impartially or in accordance with a position of trust. A common sense approach is necessary when deciding if performance has been improper, particularly when it comes to existing hospitality arrangements.
