What is Bribery?
Bribery is the offering, promising, giving, requesting, or accepting of a financial or other advantage with the intention to induce or reward improper performance.
Under the 2010 UK Bribery Act, on which the University’s rules are based, bribery is a crime identified via a number of specific offences that are outlined below. It is not a new crime – the 2010 Act simply states the latest piece of applicable UK law; with many countries also having similar legislation.
The law applies to any person or organization based in the UK and covers all of their activities, wherever they take place in the world. It also applies to any foreign person or organization who operates within the UK.
You must not offer, promise or give bribes
If you offer, promise, give or pay a bribe then this is an offence under section 1 of the Act. If the intent exists and an offer or promise is made then, even though nothing may have changed hands, this is sufficient. Nor can the law be side-stepped by getting someone else to offer the bribe on your behalf since the Act also makes it an offence for an agent or associated person, acting on your behalf, to pay or offer a bribe.
You must not allow yourself to be bribed
If you request or accept a bribe then this is an offence under section 2 of the Act. As with the offer or promise of a bribe, a request is sufficient to constitute an offence without anything having changed hands. A bribe may take any form, size or value: it is not necessarily monetary and there is no minimum threshold below which the law does not apply.
You must not bribe foreign public officials
In addition to the general offence of offering, promising or giving a bribe at section 1, there is also a specific offence, under section 6, of bribing a foreign public official. Bribes to public officials may be referred to as ‘facilitation payments’. A public official is anyone who holds a position of official authority, whether appointed or elected, and in relation to any part of a territory, as well as for the territory as a whole.
The University must not fail to prevent bribery
The three offences outlined above can be committed by both individuals and organizations. Section 7 of the Act, which applies solely to organizations, also makes it an offence for an organization to fail to prevent bribery occurring through having inadequate procedures.
Senior officers must not consent to or connive at bribery within the University
Section 14 of the Act applies specifically to senior officers of an organization and creates a specific offence if they allow bribery to take place.
Further definition:
- Facilitation payments and improper performance
- Associated persons
- Public officials