Problems and Purpose

Recognizing that corruption “harms societies, undermines economic development, and threatens democracy,” [1] the UK government aimed to improve their standing at home and abroad in terms of how they deal with corruption and bribery offences overseas. To do so, they worked to bring anti-corruption efforts under one plan, coordinating efforts across government and agencies, and with civil society, business, and international institutions.[2] In developing this plan, non-governmental organizations and civil society organizations were consulted.[2]

Background History and Context

In recent years, the UK has taken a number of steps to deal with corruption with structures and legislation brought in place including [2]:

• the Bribery Act (2010) to reform criminal law to “provide a new, modern and comprehensive scheme of bribery offences and includ[e] a new offence of failure by a commercial organisation to prevent a bribe being paid for or on its behalf”
• the Deferred Prosecution Agreements as a tool to help prosecutors combat bribery and corruption in large companies
• “two Department for International Development (DFID)-funded police units, one in the Metropolitan Police investigating money stolen from developing countries and laundered through the UK, and another unit in the City of London Police tackling bribery by UK companies and nationals in developing countries”
• “the National Crime Agency which has the role and remit to lead, support and direct other agencies to tackle serious and organised fraud, bribery and corruption”
• the new Serious and Organised Crime Strategy, which makes clear that the Home Office will lead the coordination of all domestic bribery and corruption policy, working with the Cabinet Office and DFID to align this with work on corruption overseas
• “the creation in 2012 of a UK Asset Recovery Task Force to gather evidence, trace assets and pursue legal cases to return money stolen and laundered through the UK by the former regimes of the Arab Spring countries”

Organizing, Supporting, and Funding Entities

Lead Institution: Home Office Cabinet Office

Support Institutions: CSOs: BOND Anti-Corruption Group: Article 19, CAFOD, Christian Aid, Corruption Watch, Global Witness, Integrity Action, ONE, Public Concern at Work, Tearfund, The Corner House, Transparency International UK[1]

Participant Recruitment and Selection

Methods and Tools Used

What Went On: Process, Interaction, and Participation

Influence, Outcomes, and Effects

The UK plan, published in December 2014, involved civil society closely in the process, and contained “a number of potentially transformative commitments, including a series of high profile international commitments on beneficial ownership, extractives, and international aid. Across the three OGP values, the UK action plan heavily emphasized access to information; the future action plan would benefit from focusing on vital issues such as surveillance and lobbying.”[3]

The anti-corruption agenda has been carried forward into the commitments in the UK’s 2016-2018 national action plan.[3]

Analysis and Lessons Learned

The 2015 self-assessment report also committed to ongoing work with CSOs to oversee progress in fighting corruption; a coalition called the BOND Anti-Corruption Group “saw the plan as a major step forward in UK efforts to combat corruption at home and abroad [but they] highlighted several major blind spots in the plan, including whether the strategy will be subject to a formal, transparent review process and the existence of loopholes in the actions proposed.” [3]

See Also

References

[1] UK anti-corruption plan. (2014) Available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-anti-corruption-plan

[2] Open Government Partnership. (2013). Cross-Government Anti-Corruption Plan. Retrieved from https://www.opengovpartnership.org/members/united-kingdom/commitments/UK0047/

[3] OGP (2015, Oct 23). United Kingdom Progress Report 2013-2015. Retrieved from https://www.opengovpartnership.org/documents/united-kingdom-progress-report-2013-2015/ 

External Links

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-anti-corruption-plan

Notes